Through Azeroth
by daBOSSz
Summary: AAML, Warcraft crossover. Just married, our famous young couple is looking forward to a relaxing monthlong honeymoon. They get it, but not where they originally planned it to be. DISCONTINUED DUE TO CANON CHANGES
1. Prologue

DISCLAIMER: I own the plot to this story and nothing more. Nintendo, Game Freak, and some other rich people own the Pokémon characters. Blizzard Entertainment and whichever companies hold stock in them own everything Warcraft. If I owned everything, I wouldn't be job hunting right now. 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Another wave of nostalgia got me back to writing again. This time, I've been playing way too much World of Warcraft and can't get it out of my head, so it's only fitting to do a crossover. Don't worry though, because you do not need any knowledge about Warcraft to understand this story, since much of it will be explained throughout (although some knowledge of the Warcraft lore and World of Warcraft itself really does help enhance your reading). Anyway, I don't have much else to say since I haven't written much in years. Just remember that feedback of any kind is always welcomed and thanks in advance for reading.

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Through Azeroth – Prologue

Written by daBOSS

* * *

Only he remained.

It was difficult for Kil'jaeden the Deceiver to picture the reality of the situation. The Burning Legion, once an unstoppable force of demonic power that brought endless chaos to an uncountable number of worlds in the Great Dark Beyond, now appeared powerless after its multiple failed conquests of one. Azeroth had fought back two direct invasions from the Legion, completely ending the lives of so many of its top leaders. Sargeras the Betrayer, the founder of the Legion: killed in both physical form and spirit. Archimonde the Defiler, Kil'jaeden's champion partner: destroyed by Azeroth's mortal races at the battle of Mount Hyjal. Mannorth the Destructor, the barbarous leader of the pit lords: killed at the hands of a mere orc who successfully fought against his own corruption.

The Burning Legion's plans for destroying Azeroth had all shattered. It had tried corrupting the blood of the orcish Horde on the world of Draenor and unleashing the Horde's fury upon Azeroth's humanity, but the plan fell to ruin when the orcs, so close to victory, crumpled under incessant infighting. It had spread a powerful plague that converted the inhabitants of an entire continent and beyond to a mindless undead Scourge army, but its leader, the Lich King, had grown too powerful for the Legion to control. The Legion failed to destroy the Lich King and the Scourge broke away, sending Kil'jaeden tumbling back to square one.

Its forces in Azeroth were now reduced to an almost negligible number and under constant harassment from the mortal races' adventurers. As if that were not bad enough, the mortals have reopened the Dark Portal and entered Outland, the last remnants of Draenor, where Kil'jaeden's top pawn, Illidan Stormrage, now operated. Illidan had already failed twice to destroy the Lich King and end the undead Scourge's growing power for the Legion, but with the Legion as weak as it had become, there was little choice in terms of secondary leadership under Kil'jaeden. If Azeroth's mortals drove Illidan's forces from Outland, the Burning Legion would be finished. As the lone remaining demonic champion, Kil'jaeden could not allow such a plot to solidify. He needed a new source of power to reinvigorate the Legion's strength, and he would have to search for it in a world that the Legion not yet ruined.

It would not take him long to find that world.

> > > > > >

The tiny cruise ship docked, cutting through the sun-baked waters off the Pummelo Island coast. Crewmembers were quick to open the first class cabin doors, and a young, newlywed couple stepped off the mid-afternoon liner from Pallet Town. The young man wore a tropical shirt and trunks, sandals, and donned a baseball cap. The young woman had on a matching tropical one-piece dress. Hand-in-hand, the couple strolled through the docks and toward their beachfront hotel. They had been married earlier that day, and this was the Orange Islands honeymoon both had been looking forward to.

Twenty-year-old Ash Ketchum and his wife Misty waltzed through the sandy Pummelo beach, eagerly anticipating a month off before beginning their new lives together. Ash had attained his dreams, becoming the youngest person in history to reach the top Pokémon master's ranking where he had now been sitting for three consecutive years. Being the top master meant the ability to take extended time off between tournaments and meetings, which allowed him the opportunity to have a month-long honeymoon. Misty had reached her goals as well, standing alone atop the water Pokémon world and serving as a fully licensed Pokémon nurse.

They had confessed their love to each other after he became a Pokémon master and have been the world's most recognizable couple since. News of their engagement traveled around the globe in less than a day, and while neither minded most of the attention, the incessant pursuit from the paparazzi taught them to be more careful planning their wedding. No one outside their immediate family and circle of friends knew that they had tied the knot that morning, since the entire ceremony was never announced to the public and had been held at a small meadow just north of Pallet Town.

However, this next month would not be about organizing Pokémon League tournaments or dodging camera flashes, even though someone was sure to recognize them while walking around Pummelo. This next month would be about sunny skies and sandy beaches by day with moonlit strolls and expressions of love in the evenings. Pummelo was the perfect resort to leave the daily workload behind and enjoy an unforgettable honeymoon.

Little did the young couple know that the honeymoon would completely deviate from their own script.

> > > > > >

Yes, such an untapped world would be perfect.

Kil'jaeden had found what he was looking for. This new world had creatures that harbored more elements of magic than Azeroth. He watched as the humans captured and trained these creatures, increasing the strength of their individual powers. He knew that if he could corrupt these creatures and bend their wills to serve his own purposes, he could harness their energies and use them to strengthen the Burning Legion once more. With the combined energies from these creatures fusing its demonic powers, the Legion would be an unstoppable force again.

Kil'jaeden chuckled to himself at this thought, surprised that he hadn't discovered this world earlier, and went to work on his new plan. Yes, the humans of this world were unbelievably foolish to not realize the true potential of these creatures' combined powers, and he would soon show them what they were missing. It was only a matter of time before he would corrupt them all and absorb this new world into the realm of the Burning Legion, and revenge on Azeroth for all it had done in the past would be his at last.

Calling upon two of his top dreadlords stationed in Outland, Kil'jaeden ordered them to begin channeling energies from the Great Dark Beyond to open a portal that would bridge the two worlds.

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: There you have it. If you have any questions about Warcraft or if you want to provide some feedback, you can reach me through private messaging or reviews (I do have anonymous reviews enabled).


	2. Chapter 1: Pummelo

DISCLAIMER: The following person does not own either Pokémon or Warcraft: me. They belong to Nintendo and Blizzard Entertainment respectively. Everything written here is to be used for entertainment only and not profit. 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Now our story "really' begins. If you play World of Warcraft, you're probably going to be very familiar with certain settings. As mentioned in the prologue, knowledge about the Warcraft lore is not necessary, but helps a ton. This is a Pokémon story nonetheless because the main plot revolves around Pokémon characters and I am presuming that anyone who reads this understands the basics of the Pokémon "realm." As always, feedback of any kind is greatly welcomed, including flames.

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 1

Written by daBOSS

* * *

"Mmm, now this is a vacation," Misty exhaled, propping up their umbrella before making herself comfortable upon her husband's lap.

"Yeah, I'm glad we decided to come back to Pummelo Island for this," Ash responded. "So much has changed since I was here to compete for the Orange League crown."

The newlywed couple wasted no time finding comfort upon the sandy Pommelo beach. After checking into their hotel room, they quickly dropped their belongings, changed into their swimwear, rented a beach chair and umbrella, and staked a land claim along the densely populated shores.

Ash squeezed a dose of sun protection lotion onto his hands and massaged it onto Misty's back, receiving a small moan of appreciation in reply. "I don't ever remember Pummelo being such a popular tourist attraction," he said while working his hands around her shoulders and down her arms.

"Me neither," Misty answered. "When we were here all those years ago, this place was strictly about Pokémon training. Now it's become a bigger tourist trap than Cinnabar."

Ash chuckled at his wife's comparison. "Yeah, Drake feels the same way. At the last League meeting, all he could talk about was how frustrating it had become to find decent Pokémon trainers wandering Pommelo anymore." He squeezed another dose of lotion and gently rubbed it upon her legs.

Misty turned around and gave her husband a joking grin. "And knowing why we're here, I don't think we're helping to ease his frustration either."

"Hah, he doesn't even know we're here!" Ash laughed, finishing his work on her and handing her the plastic bottle. "But let's not worry about that stuff. I mean, we're here for our honeymoon, Mist."

"Of course silly," Misty replied, squeezing the lotion from the bottle. "This next month will be about nothing other than you and me."

Ash sat up from the chair, allowing Misty to reach her hands around him and apply the lotion to his back. Taking advantage of the position, he leaned forward and placed his lips upon hers, eagerly showing her his affection. She returned the kiss with just as much fervor, sliding her hands along his back in a manner that started driving him insane.

They broke the kiss as she moved her hands to his chest, a soft moan escaping from their lips almost simultaneously. He leaned back into his chair while she acquired and applied more lotion, having to restrain herself from losing control while her hands traced along the stiff texture of his chest and abdomen. She smiled, realizing that if they were not in a public area, she would not hesitate to unleash herself upon him without limits.

Misty finished her lotion work on his arms and legs and leaned down to steal another kiss before lying herself upon her husband, resting her head against his neckline. "I can't believe we're married," she whispered, closing her eyes and taking in the comfort of the setting.

Ash smiled wholeheartedly, bringing his right arm from her waist and caressed her cheek. "Yeah, it's still just sinking in," he answered, brushing away a few strands of her stray hair and relocating them to a spot behind her ear.

"And tonight, we'll finally take that last step we've been waiting for," she added.

He nodded, knowing exactly what she was referring to. Upon becoming a couple, they had almost immediately agreed not to rush their relationship to a level they were not fully prepared for. They discussed the topic seriously for some time, deciding that it would be best to wait until after marriage so their first time would be much more special.

He tilted her chin up to meet his gaze and gave her a small kiss. "I'm so glad we decided to wait," he said. "It'll make tonight a night we won't ever forget."

"I love you so much Ash."

"I love you too Mist."

Their lips locked once more as they simply embraced the rush of passion emanating from the closeness of each other. The surge of emotions would have continued to build had Ash not interrupted it with a small laugh.

"What's so funny all of a sudden?" Misty pondered, puzzled at her husband's minor unexpected outburst.

Ash gave a warm smile in return. "I'm just thinking back to that day when we first told each other how we felt."

"Oh, that," Misty smirked. "Yeah, we definitely weren't able to hold back any longer."

> > > > > >

(Flashback)

Ash stood atop the artificial island at the center of the pool, eyes frozen on the figure before him. Her face was brimming with a tenderness he had been yearning to nurture for ages. Her cerulean blue eyes sparkled brightly under the stage lights. He was completely lost in them, scanning her retinas, desperate to search her soul. She looked as if she was concealing an infinite number of emotions within and wanted to unload them all at once.

His hands trembled while holding hers. He had just "rescued" this beautiful mermaid from two "evil villains," and he was now supposed to speak to her. Yet upon locking eyes with her from such a close proximity, all the words he had been scripted to say flew from his memory. He could only stare blankly, knowing that this mermaid was the same girl who had been giving him butterflies ever since he started on his Pokémon journey. Seconds were passing as the audience was waiting for the next part of the act, but at that moment, those seconds and that audience in Ash's mind were far beyond the horizon. All he could concentrate on was how beautiful she looked, and all he wanted to do was sweep her off her tail and into his arms.

Misty had the same thoughts racing through her mind. The boy she faced was dressed as a prince, but Misty was paying no attention to his clothing or his role. Her focus was on his eyes, his handsome face, and how he had the same blank look as her. She couldn't move. She didn't even want to move. She had never felt her heart beat at such a rapid pace before as she stood on her mermaid tail glued to his expression. He had taken her hands into his own from below, and she found herself squeezing them as if her very existence depended on such a tight grip.

Neither Ash nor Misty could believe what Misty's sisters had done. Ash, already a world famous Pokémon master but still seeking the number one ranking, was taking a weeklong break from training to visit Misty in Cerulean City. Upon hearing the news, Misty's sisters immediately cast him as the prince in their never-ending mermaid play without notifying him. Even before he had arrived in Cerulean, flyers and banners had been hung across the city notifying its residents that Pokémon Master Ash Ketchum would be starring as the prince for performances during the week he would be in town. Ticket sales had gone through the roof, and every show of that week became overbooked. The three elder Sensational Sisters cried in joy almost daily, while Misty and Ash remained dumbfounded after their discovery.

The Sensational Sisters were merely exploiting their opportunities. Both Ash and Misty expressed frustration at their quick scheme, and both walked into their first performance simply eager to get it over with and not disappoint the audience. They were now toward the end of that performance, at a part where the mermaid was supposed to thank the prince for her rescue and walk away with a heavy heart while the prince was to declare that she was the most beautiful girl he had ever witnessed and ask if he would ever see her again. However, their emotions had other plans, and the closeness of each other coupled with years of withheld desire made neither of them realize that they were deviating from the script.

It felt as though he was no longer in control of his own body movement. Ash slid his right hand up her bare arm, nervously absorbing the tenderness of her baby-soft skin. He ran his hand along her shoulder before it came to rest upon her cheek, never once taking his eyes away from hers. Part of him expected her to resist or at least say her line and snap him out of his trance, but she did neither; instead, her eyes told him that she was openly welcoming his touch.

He found his face leaning forward while his hand began bringing her cheek back. Neither he nor her were trying to stop themselves from what was about to happen. Both of them had wanted this for years, and both were now finally able to unearth enough courage to close any existing distance, both figuratively and literally, between them.

Their lips met for the first time, creating an emotional rush of adrenaline that surged through their bodies. Gradually, he let go of her other hand and moved both of his to her waist, pulling her close so that their bodies came in contact. Her arms snaked around his neck, clinging to him tightly while adding to the intensity of the kiss. All the feelings that had been embedded within them since childhood, all the passion from their hearts that they had harbored for each other were released into their first kiss.

The kiss died slowly and they broke apart, continuing to lose themselves in each others' eyes. There were no hints of worry, regret, or even astonishment. The two only smiled lovingly at each other, having conquered their own internal fears to reach this plateau.

"I love you," he whispered softly.

"I love you too," she answered.

A huge roar from the audience brought both of them out of their own world and, for a moment, back to reality. Embarrassed, both released their grips on each other and looked toward the crowd. Yet they were received with nothing but cheers, whistles, and intense applause. The audience was on their feet, believing that this was the end of the play and giving the actors a standing ovation. Misty looked to Daisy, who was sitting front-row-center, and got a nod in response followed by applause and cheers from her as well. Turning back to Ash, she gave him another kiss, much to the delight of everyone in the building.

They stood there and took their bows and did not move until the crowd left the gym. Ash looked at Misty and grinned.

"I guess it wasn't such a bad idea for your sisters to cast me in this play after all," he remarked.

"Yeah," she replied, beaming. "They did something right for once."

(End Flashback)

> > > > > >

Evening had descended upon Pummelo Island. Ash and Misty dined at a fancy restaurant in the hotel lobby and decided to take a stroll along the moonlit beach before returning to their room. They had changed their attire back to the casual, tropical clothes they wore when they arrived earlier that day.

"It's such a beautiful night out tonight," Misty proclaimed, leaning her head against her husband's shoulder. "Clear skies, full moon, infinite bright stars…"

"It's so romantic," Ash teased, imitating her voice, to which he was rewarded with a playful slap against his chest and a small chuckle. "Admit it Honey, that's where you were going."

"I don't sound like that Ketchum," she retorted, giving him a small jab in the upper arm. "Now come on, let's walk somewhere less crowded."

The two strolled on, passing through the tourist areas before reaching a place where the land began to rise into a seaside cliff. They continued along the edges until reaching its peak, where a crystal clear view of the scenic horizon combined with absolutely zero tourists enthralled the young couple's sight.

Ash sat down atop a giant rock and Misty sat upon his lap, leaning herself backward and making herself comfortable against his chest. Ash wrapped his arms around her waist and nudged her hair aside, then covered her neck with kisses to drive her wild. Misty tilted her head slightly to meet his lips with her own, and before long the two found themselves in a make-out war. The air around them was crisp and cool, but the burning passion emulating from the young lovers was heating up the atmosphere surrounding the cliff. They could feel the desire for each other rise, and they knew they were ready.

A sudden jolt from both the air above and the ground below broke the moment of passion.

"What the hell was that?" Ash asked. It felt like an earthquake, but the air was quaking as well.

"We should probably get out of here," Misty suggested. "If there really is an earthquake, this cliff could collapse."

Ash however, did not even have time to agree with her. A second jolt hit them just as unexpectedly as the first, and without warning, a large circle of light appeared out of nowhere right in front of the young couple. The energy of the light began pulling its surroundings in with so much force that the rock the two had been sitting on was uprooted and absorbed in an instant. Before they could even think about the unexplained of events, Ash and Misty found themselves spiraling through a twisting portal of both blinding light and darkness.

> > > > > >

The young couple landed with a crashing thud a few meters apart from each other. Both got up quickly and observed their surroundings. The sandy beach of Pommelo Island was nowhere to be seen. The crystal clear night sky littered with stars had been seemingly destroyed. They were now in a dark and desolate barren wasteland with no sign of vegetation. The sky was cloudy and lightning storms were striking off in the distance. Several giant, red boulders dotted the landscape, limiting room for maneuverability. The large portal that they had come through was at least forty meters behind them.

"Are you okay Honey?" Misty asked, helping her husband to his feet.

"Yeah," he assured her. "Don't worry, I'm not hurt. Are you okay?"

"I'm good," she said, dusting herself off. "What happened?"

"I don't know, but frankly, I don't want to know," he answered. "Let's just get out of here fast."

She nodded at him and they ran for the portal, realizing it was how they arrived and hoping that it would be their ticket home. Yet they hadn't even made it halfway through when a sudden bolt of dark energy crashed into Ash full force, knocking him off his feet and sending him tumbling at least ten meters.

"Ash!" Misty shrieked, rushing to her husband's side. Now he was hurt and she could see the scrapes and cuts from the fall.

Ash coughed away the dust from the impact and looked up to see his wife's face. "I'm okay," he said, "just bleeding a little. Don't worry; I'll patch myself up when we get back home."

"Do not presume you are headed anywhere!" a voice roared.

Ash and Misty stood up and held onto each other tightly, peeking over in the direction of the voice. Out of the shadows stepped two gigantic demonic figures lavender-gray in color. Both towered above the young couple, well over twice the height of Ash. Each had two horns curled upward extending out of their foreheads and a pair of wings that spanned three times the width of their bodies, and both of their faces were of pure evil.

"Puny mortals!" one of them called, pointing at Ash and Misty. "The Burning Legion will have fun crushing you."

Instinct took over the Pokémon trainers, each reaching toward their belts and removing a Pokéball.

"Go Snorlax!"

"Go Gyarados!"

In a flash, the giant Pokémon appeared, ready to defend their masters.

The demons looked at the two new creatures joining the conflict and let out an evil laugh. Instantly, they both waved their palms, sending the Pokémon to the ground crying in agony.

"Gyarados/Snorlax!" the trainers exclaimed. They were about to approach their injured Pokémon when the demons stepped in between.

"Your pathetic creatures are no match for the Legion's powers!" one of them bellowed. "Now it's your turn to taste in our might!"

Another bolt of dark energy was launched at Ash, hitting him straight in the chest and sending him tumbling once more. Misty ran toward her husband, helping him sit up. He was conscious, but badly injured.

The demons cackled fiercely at the weakness of the young couple and approached them again, ready to land the killing blow. Misty looked up into their faces, faces that sought nothing but death and destruction, fighting back her fears and standing in front to shield the man she loved. Yet in the back of her mind, she knew it was useless. These demons had knocked their Pokémon out without even landing a finger on them, and if they wanted to finish off both her and Ash, they needed very little effort to do it.

The demons glared at her and began charging up one final attack together to end the confrontation. Misty braced herself for the fate about to come.

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: Wow, this chapter went longer than I expected! I think I just had too much fun writing this, even though I did it throughout the middle of the night when I should be sleeping. Chapter 2 will be up shortly. Please send me any feedback you may have. Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 2: Outland

DISCLAIMER: As much as I wish I did, I don't own Pokémon or Warcraft. Nintendo and Blizzard Entertainment do respectively. Anything I write using their characters or settings are not for profit. Bringing a lawsuit against me will cost you more than you'll get in return. 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: After reading this chapter, you may be wondering where I got the names of adventurers from. Well, to answer your ponderings in advance, they're all characters I've played with or know of from World of Warcraft. For the most part, I matched them up with their character race and class. If anyone reads this and recognizes those names, I officially surrender; you can probably figure out who I am and what servers I played on. No, I did not use my own character names anywhere, so that should offer you some clue about my identity D Anyway, on with the show; any feedback is welcomed as usual.

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 2

Written by daBOSS

* * *

Misty closed her eyes, fighting back her tears of grief. How in the world did it come to this so suddenly? Minutes ago, she sat in the arms of her lover gazing at the full moon and stars from atop a majestic cliff along the Pummelo Island coast. Now he lay bruised and beaten beneath her in an alien land they had never visited before on the verge of death at the hands of two colossal demonic figures. There was nothing either of them could do.

Misty let her mind ease listening to the demons charge up their energies for the killing blow, focusing her thoughts on how much she loved the man she was trying to protect, the man she had just married that morning, as she prepared to make a final peace with herself.

"Banish!"

A high pitched feminine voice exclaimed loudly from nearby, startling both the demons and the young couple. Misty and Ash turned toward the origin of the sound only to hear one of the demons in sudden pain, surrounded by a thick layer of translucent green smoke. The channeled spell was broken and the demon found itself unable to move or cast. Its partner, angered with the unexpected interruption of their death spell, immediately stormed off in the direction of the noise.

"Enslave demon!" the same voice cried.

Chains appeared out of nowhere in midair and tightly encased the demon, weakening its free will and forcing it to submit to a new master. The Pokémon trainers darted their eyes, watching as the demon walked over to a tiny figure whose face was covered in a violet-colored horned hood.

"Handil, tank the other one after the banish releases. Larien and Balstadme, go help them out," the figure directed. "I'm going to keep this guy as my slave for awhile."

Two people came running toward Misty. The taller one, a woman, was dressed in light blue robes with shoulder pieces that emitted two huge beams of turquoise aura. The shorter one, a man, stood only half her height and had an extremely bushy orange beard hanging from his chin while the rest of his face was covered behind a black masked helmet.

"Oh god, are you two all right?" the woman asked, extending her arms out to Misty.

"M-m-my husband!" Misty beckoned, choking back tears. "He's badly injured!"

"Don't worry dear," the woman reassured her. "We'll take care of this. Balstadme, heal him quickly!"

"You got it!" the short man nodded and placed a hand on Ash's chest. A white aura surrounded the two of them as he began charging up a spell.

"Holy light!" he shouted softly, watching his spell finish and accomplish its task. Misty looked on in complete astonishment as Ash's cuts and bruises simply vanished. He sat up straight, waiting a few seconds for his breath to return to normal.

"Ash!" she almost screamed, flinging herself into his arms. Tears, this time of joy, continued falling from her eyes while she clung tightly to him.

"Get up," the woman ordered, breaking their short-lived moment of relief. "We need to get you two to safety."

"What about our Pokémon?" Ash asked. "They're really hurt!"

The woman looked over at the two mysterious creatures, hearing their soft cries caused by the pain that the demons had inflicted on them. She waved her hand upward in their direction. "Remove curse!" she called.

Instantly, Snorlax and Gyrados got back up, eager to battle once more. Ash and Misty looked at each other dumbfounded, naturally wondering how in the world she was able to cure them without any recovery items.

As if she read their minds, the woman responded to their sudden state of shock. "I'll explain later. Right now, you two need to be away from this area."

Deciding to not take any time to question her due to their near encounter with death, Ash and Misty called back their Pokémon and turned toward the blue-robed woman. Her eyes shifted to the portal behind them first before returning their glance.

"Follow me," she directed before turning to the tiny figure whose voice began the entire rescue process. "Viviane, make sure you and Handil destroy the portal while it's still weak. Don't forget to collect the dust and bring it back to the camp."

"No problem!" the short feminine figure replied. "Leave it to us."

The woman started running off in one direction, gesturing Ash and Misty to follow. They did so obediently, not having time to ponder their situation anymore. All they knew was that this group saved their lives when hopelessness seemed to be the only guarantee, and that they would be grateful once they found the opportunity to talk.

The woman stopped after covering a small distance. "Put your hands on my shoulders," she requested. "Don't worry, the light won't hurt you at all."

The young couple did as she told them, placing their hands over the brightly glowing aura emitted from her shoulder pads. The woman started channeling a spell.

"Teleport: Outland base camp!" she ordered to no one in general.

Then in a sudden flash, all three figures disappeared from the area.

> > > > > >

It took a split second for the three to arrive at a small camp. The landscape remained the same red, dry wasteland littered with boulders beneath a dark, stormy sky, but the portal and the three others who came with the woman to stop the demon attack and save the Pokémon trainers were nowhere to be seen. Replacing them were a few guards geared in medieval style knight armor. Each guard wore a blue tabard over his or her armor that bore a gold lion's head insignia.

Still with their minds full of questions, Ash and Misty looked on while the woman walked up to the only guard not wearing a helmet and spoke to him briefly. Several minutes later, she bowed and walked back in their direction.

"I'm sorry about that," she said. "I was talking to Commander Thatchet about what we've just discovered. He heads our operations for this part of Outland."

"No need to apologize," Ash said. "You saved our lives. We owe everything to you."

"It was nothing," replied the now blushing woman. "I'm used to this kind of task."

Ash was about to continue pouring her his gratitude when he recalled the last thing she said.

"Wait, Outland?" he piqued, clearly unfamiliar with the term.

"Yes, you are in a world known as Outland," the woman replied. "This place was once known as Draenor, the former home to two races who've since moved to our world of Azeroth."

Ash stared back at his wife before returning his attention to her. "I'm lost," he admitted.

The woman smiled. "I take it you two came from the portal?" she asked, receiving two nods in return. "That's understandable. You may be from a world that's not familiar with intergalactic travel."

"Intergalactic?" Misty popped up. "You mean we're not even on the same planet we were on a few minutes ago?"

"That's correct," the woman answered. "The portal you came through was a link between this world and yours. The demons you witnessed were part of a larger force known as the Burning Legion, and they were the ones responsible for creating it. Although we have no evidence regarding this particular case, we're very familiar dealing with their kind, and we can with a good degree of certainty conclude that they were plotting an invasion of your world."

The Pokémon trainers looked at each other for a moment, bewildered at this new information. Having felt their powers firsthand, they both realized the potential consequences of a demonic invasion.

"We have to stop them then!" Ash declared, leaping to his feet.

"We already did," said the woman. "The three who were with me should be finished killing them and destroying the portal by now. They'll be back at the camp soon."

"Wait a minute, destroying the portal?" Panic began to rise in Ash's voice. "How can we get home if the portal's gone?"

The woman looked at him sympathetically. "Right now, we have to be focused on the bigger picture," she said. "If the portal exists, then a link to your world from this one does as well, which would mean that those demons would have a gateway to your world. By destroying the portal, we've severed the link and kept them here."

Misty opened her mouth to speak, but stopped herself ahead of time as she let the words sink in. She tried to think as the woman continued on.

"I know you two want to go home, but for the safety of both our worlds, we need to find out exactly what the Burning Legion has planned first. After we've deciphered enough, we can work to stop them. And do not worry, because I had Viviane collect dust from the portal so if we ever wanted to open another one, we could."

"So we're stuck here until that happens?" Misty asked, already knowing the answer.

"I'm afraid so," said the woman. "But I'll make sure we find you a safe place to stay in our world of Azeroth." She gradually scanned her eyes around to observe the scenery before looking back in Misty's direction. "You don't want to stay in Outland. The Burning Legion and other threats are everywhere here."

Ash was ready to declare that such threats struck no fear into his veins, having conquered his share of dangers from Teams Rocket, Magma, and Aqua to the Pokémon League challenges, but realized that this was not the time. This Burning Legion was an alien force to both him and Misty, and the injuries he sustained from the life-or-death encounter a few minutes ago validated the theory that this was a group far more powerful than anything that existed in the world he was familiar with.

"Okay then," Ash adhered. "I guess we have no choice."

"All right then, I'll take you to Azeroth," said the woman. "I'll explain more about this world along the way."

She then extended her hand at the young couple.

"I'm Larien by the way. I'm a mage."

"I'm Ash, Pokémon master. This is my wife Misty."

"It's nice to meet you Ash," Larien replied. "I look forward to learning more about your world and what a Pokémon master is."

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: All right, that's that. Originally I planned a ton for this chapter, but I've decided on an alternate plan to keep all chapters shorter so I can upload them faster instead of writing fifty pages before doing so. Everything I want to cover will still be covered though. As always, feedback of any kind is welcomed. Stay tuned for the next chapter!


	4. Chapter 3: Azeroth

DISCLAIMER: Sure, I own both Pokémon and Warcraft. After all, which person who owns the copyright to something famous doesn't write fan fiction about it? (If you cannot see the sarcasm, I feel sorry for you :-p) 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: How do you like the story so far? I haven't received that much feedback, so I don't know what many of you are thinking as you're reading. Please start sending me any thoughts you may have. Remember, from the harshest flames to the most elated cheers, I welcome them all. Do not be shy to voice me your open and honest opinions. I use your words to help myself become a better writer over time.

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 3

Written by daBOSS

* * *

Ash and Misty soon found themselves teleported to another strange land. This time though, the scenery was much more welcoming. They stood in a park decorated with trees and gardens of flowers. In the middle was a large manmade pool of water surrounded by pagoda style architecture. Around the park, tightly aligned white buildings dotted along narrow stone city streets. The sky was clear once more, and although the trees and buildings covered the moon, a thousand stars illuminated the park from above. 

"This is Stormwind City," Larien said to the young couple. "Welcome to the human capital of Azeroth. The inn is a short walk away. Let's head there I'll see if I can get you a room."

The three strolled on with Ash holding his wife's hand tightly. Misty was quick to strike up a conversation.

"Larien," she began, "I'd like to know what the deal with this world is. So far I saw a short little thing control two demons, you teleporting us all over the place, and some bearded person half your height heal my husband's cuts and bruises completely."

Larien gave a small giggle upon hearing Misty's words. "Ah, welcome to Azeroth," she said. "Here, the practice of magic is common and almost taken for granted."

"Magic?" Ash jumped in.

"Yes, magic," Larien replied. "Azeroth has been practicing magic for well over ten millenniums. Many of us have mastered different forms of magic. I'm a mage. I specialize in arcane magic."

"Mage?"

"Mage," Larien continued. "Azeroth is full of adventurers who are eager to aid their respective allies. All adventurers are one of nine classes depending on what we've been practicing since we were young. I've studied the arcane arts from age six onward, and today like many other mages, I've mastered much of it."

"What about the other three people who were with you earlier?" Ash asked. "And why did they look so…not human?"

Larien laughed again. "That's because they aren't humans," she answered. "The little lady who banished and enslaved the demons was a gnome warlock. The one who healed you was a dwarf paladin. The last one with the long ears was a night elf warrior."

Ash and Misty looked at each other for a few moments, letting the words sink in.

"This world is weird," Ash whispered into his wife's ear. "Non-humans can act just like humans?"

Misty nodded in agreement as the three turned a corner and exited the park, now walking on a road alongside the city's canals.

"Azeroth is home to a multiple number of humanoid races," Larien continued explaining, having not heard Ash's whispers. "Humans are only one of them. The dwarves, gnomes, and night elves are three more. They're our allies. I take it you two are from a world where humans are the only race?"

"Yes we are," said Ash. "We coexist with creatures called Pokémon, but they aren't really humanoids."

"Yes, I've read about such worlds," Larien acknowledged, "but so far I only know they exist. For us here on Azeroth, they remain a mystery."

"Well we'd be more than happy to tell you about ours," said Misty.

"And I would love to hear more," said Larien, "but I think it is best that you hold it off until we meet a leader. That way your words would fall into the ears of someone with power and you won't have to explain yourself twice."

"Wait, a leader?" Ash was once again full of questions. "We're going to meet a leader?"

"Chances are you will," answered Larien. "When they begin to work on figuring out what the Burning Legion is up to in trying to invade your world, they will almost certainly want your help. After all, you know more about your own world than we do about it, right?"

"Yeah, but the leaders here actually call upon normal people?" Ash asked.

"Of course they do," Larien replied. "Adventurers play a critical role in safeguarding the kingdom. Most of our military is fighting in distant lands, so our security falls to us. No matter what race or what faction we belong to, we serve our superiors with honor and pride."

"Faction?" Ash continued his chain of questions.

"Ah, I haven't explained that part to you yet," Larien realized. "There are two major factions in Azeroth. The humans, dwarves, gnomes, night elves, and draenei are all members of the Alliance. Our enemies are the Horde, which consists of the orcs, tauren, trolls, blood elves, and a group of undead known as the Forsaken. Although we have many enemies in common and we are not officially at war with each other, the hatred between our factions is so intense that it has been renewed even after we fought alongside each other during the last invasion of the Burning Legion."

"How did this hatred come about?" asked Misty.

"It's a complicated story and it'll take me forever to explain," said Larien. "Besides, I don't know enough about it. You'll most likely have to seek out a leader or hit the library to find all the information. Just remember that if you two were to wander into Horde lands, they will try to kill you on sight."

Larien noticed the young couple's faces turn white with fear and concern.

"Don't worry though," she tried to ease them. "As long as you're in Stormwind or another Alliance city, you're safe."

"Good thing," Ash sighed. "We don't want to get killed on our honeymoon."

"Oh you just got married?" the mage turned to them and was greeted with nods. "Congratulations! I'm sorry you have to spend your honeymoon here, but I'll do everything I can to make sure you enjoy it as much as possible."

"Oh there's no need for that," Misty politely assured her. "You've already done more than enough for us. You saved our lives!"

"Ah, like I said, it was nothing," Larien blushed again. "Adventurers do it all the time."

By now the three had crossed the canal, walked through the heart of Stormwind's trade district, and arrived at the doorsteps of the Stormwind inn.

"The best part of being an adventurer is that we get to stay in inns without charge," Larien said beaming. "We've already paid for it with our services and all the innkeepers worry about us underestimating the importance of a good night rest. I'm going to head in and get you two a room."

She turned and walked in, giving the Pokémon trainers some time to observe their surroundings. Stormwind's architecture was incredibly medieval with most houses made completely of stone. The narrow streets were not packed, but there were plenty of people nonetheless considering that the clock almost showed midnight. The inn stood at an L-shaped street corner with a fountain in the middle. On the south side stood a counting house, which was still open and bustling with people. Around a nearby street corner was an auction house with a line that rounded the same corner.

Larien walked back out before Ash and Misty could say anything to each other.

"Ugh, sorry guys, but there's no vacancy at this inn," she informed them. "The innkeeper told me that rooms were still available in Ironforge, so we're going to have to go there."

"Ironforge?" Ash questioned. "Where's that?"

"Ironforge is the dwarf capital and also the home of the gnomes now," Larien replied. "It's quite a distance from Stormwind, but we can get there very quickly if we take the subway."

"There's a subway here?" Misty piqued, amazed that a seemingly old city would have something so modern.

"Yes, it's technically known as the Deeprun Tram," Larien explained as the three began their walk across town to the station. "After the last war, the Alliance became frustrated at the slow pace in which supplies were transferred, so King Magni Bronzebeard of the dwarves called upon our trusty gnomish allies, led by High Tinker Mekkatorque, to construct a modern tram that would link our capitals together. A few years later, the tram is complete and travel between Stormwind and Ironforge has never been easier, faster, or safer."

"The gnomes built it?" Ash questioned in near disbelief. "The same gnomes as the one who managed to stop the demons from attacking us?"

"Yes, the same gnomes," Larien confirmed with a humorous smile. "Don't let their small statures fool you. They're the brains behind the Alliance. They're a very peculiar race always obsessed with technology in addition to their mastery of magic. I swear when I speak to them, I can't understand half the words they say."

"All of them practice magic?" asked Misty.

"No, but many do," said Larien. "Not every race contains members of every class. Only humans and gnomes are mages and warlocks."

"What's the difference?" Misty continued.

"Warlocks were once mages like us, but they delved too deeply into demonic magic and now only practice the darker spells and rely on nether energies to fuel their powers," Larien explained. "Many warlocks came about as a direct result of the Burning Legion's corruption, and while the Legion still possesses a ton of them, we've accepted that there are plenty who use their magic to aid us."

"Is that the reason the gnome was able to handle two demons?" asked Misty.

"Exactly," said Larien. "They're demonic masters. They have enough power to control and enslave demons. In fact, they're able to bind certain demons' spirits to themselves, which gives them complete and permanent control over those demons, which they use as combat minions. Their powers are what frighten us, but their own free wills keep them contained and their resistance to corruption keeps them loyal to the Alliance."

"Then what about mages?" Ash questioned. "Where does that leave you?"

"We're certainly not as powerful as warlocks," Larien answered. "But we have abilities they don't as well. We deal more damage on average, and we cast both arcane and frost spells along with fire while they only have fire and shadow. Do you remember how your Pokémon stopped crying in pain?"

"Yes. How did you do that?"

"Mages can remove curses. I noticed how they were wincing and knew that the demons cast curse of agony on them, which slowly drains their health away. Once I removed it, they were fine…short on health, but fine."

Ash and Misty looked at each other astonished. As Pokémon masters, they had believed that they were two of the most powerful figures in the world, but having heard what Larien had been telling them, their mastery of Pokémon seemed so insignificant compared with the mastery of magic possessed by so many of this world's individuals. Then again, this was not their world, but neither believed that such a place actually existed outside of mythology.

"What about the other two who were with you?" asked Misty.

"Balstadme is a dwarf paladin," Larien continued describing. "Paladins are all members of the Silver Hand who swear to uphold and defend the holy light against dark powers. They were once exclusively human, but because of our steadfast alliance with the dwarves, the Silver Hand has welcomed many of them into its rankings. Paladins are Azeroth's holy warriors who protect honor and justice."

"And do they know magic as well?"

"They only do minutely. They can cast a few holy spells and heal the wounded, but for the most part they fight with their weapons."

"Healing," Misty muttered under her breath but still loud enough for Larien to hear. She turned to Ash and whispered, "It's just like certain Pokémon who know recover, but they can use it on allies."

"That's correct," Larien confirmed. "Four of the nine classes know how to heal, and you may not believe this after seeing Balstadme heal Ash tonight, but paladins are actually the worst of the four at healing."

Misty was about to express shock through her face again, but stopped when she convinced herself that she needed to lower the mental barriers between fantasy and reality that she had learned and come to know from growing up in the Pokémon world. Healing wounds with spells, practicing magic, a high tech subway in a medieval town, and anything else Larien had yet to explain to them were nothing unusual in Azeroth, and if she and Ash were about to spend some time here, they ought to learn to treat much of this as given knowledge.

"And Handil is a night elf warrior," Larien carried on. "Warriors are the ultimate melee combat class. They wear the best armor, use the best weapons, and thrive in face-to-face battle. They're the best at taunting enemies to keep all enemy attacks focused on themselves so others don't get beaten up, and rightly so because they can take the most damage."

"So they know no magic and just fight?" Ash asked.

"Precisely," Larien responded. "That's why Viviane asked Handil to tank the demon earlier. She knew that if he had its attention, she could freely cast her spells while Balstadme healed. Without Handil, the demon would've crushed her and Balstadme. Only warriors can take so much damage and thirst for more."

They went through the canal region of Stormwind once again, this time taking a turn into a much smoggier portion of the city.

"Dwarven District," Larien introduced. "This is where all the smelting happens, hence the smoke. The humans and dwarves have always been close allies, since both our races share similar interests in the arts of combat and storytelling."

Ash and Misty followed on, unable to help but stare at the men and women of such short stature. This was after all their first full glimpse at a race other than humans.

As if reading their minds, Larien spoke up. "Hah, if you like dwarves, Ironforge is full of them!"

They turned into a circular tunnel that had a giant revolving bolt as an entrance. The tunnel's walls were just as mobile with each section rotating in alternating directions. Upon exiting the short tunnel, the three found themselves at a very modern subway station. There was a small crowd standing in front of them, no doubt also trying to catch the next train to Ironforge.

The young couple observed their settings, marveling at the contrast between where they were now and the scenery just outside the tunnel. It was as if several hundred years had merely flown past them.

"Amazing isn't it?" asked Larien. "When I think about it, I'm still shocked at how the gnomes managed to build this. The Alliance is so fortunate to have them. Traveling between Stormwind and Ironforge used to involve traversing the harshest and most dangerous lands. Now it's a one minute tram ride."

The tram arrived, coming to a small screeching halt at the station. Larien hopped on followed by Ash and Misty hand-in-hand. They took their seats and waited a few seconds while the other passengers boarded. It wasn't long before the tram sped off in the direction it came from, sloping deeper underground first, traveling a good distance, and finally angled upward toward the surface. Before they could even utter a word, the tram stopped and the doors opened. Ash and Misty looked out to see the giant sign labeled "Ironforge Station" above the door.

"Here we are," Larien announced. "Fast huh? And this thing never rests. If you ever need to travel between the two cities, just come here and hop aboard."

"Good to know," said Ash.

"First through this tunnel is the Tinker Town portion of Ironforge," Larien pointed. "The gnomes live here now after their old home, Gnomeregan, was run over by a foul menace from within. I won't bore you with details, but just know that they scheme here night and day hoping to recover their beloved city."

Ash and Misty nodded as they walked into Tinker Town, where it was clear that technology was the theme. A large room littered with alchemy supplies stood across them toward the left side, while another one piled with engineering supplies lay at the right end. Most of the town was empty, as it was pretty late at night, but directly in front of them, atop a giant semicircle that jarred out of the ground, stood a lone gnome still working on a project.

"Larien!" the gnome exclaimed upon seeing her. "Good to see you've returned safe and sound. What did you find in Outland?"

"Hello Tinker," Larien greeted. "I'm afraid our fears have been confirmed. The Burning Legion is plotting something huge." She looked toward the Pokémon trainers. "This is Ash and Misty. They came from the world in which the dreadlords were caught opening the portal to."

"Nice to meet you Ash and Misty," the gnome hailed. "I'm High Tinker Mekkatorque, the leader of the gnomish race. Please make yourselves at home here in Tinker Town. Any friend of Larien is a friend of mine." He turned back toward Larien. "That's not good news. You should report it to King Magni immediately."

"That's where I'm headed," said Larien. "You should get some rest. Look at you, you're exhausted!"

"Oh don't worry, I will once I finish up this latest experiment report," he assured her. "You take care now!"

Ash watched Larien and the gnome bid their goodbyes and followed her as she began walking out of Tinker Town toward the other parts of Ironforge.

"That was the guy who built the tram?" he asked.

"Yes, that's him all right," she smiled as she answered. "I'm revered with the gnomes for much of what I've done to help them try and reclaim Gnomeregan, so the High Tinker and I are very familiar with each other."

"Are all leaders this approachable here?" Misty questioned intriguingly.

"They are if you're willing to help your faction," replied Larien. "As I said, most of the Alliance army is fighting in distant lands, so the leaders are always looking for volunteer adventurers to assist them in defending the home front."

"Strange," Ash thought to himself, having come from a world where leaders almost never interacted with the public. He remembered how he had never truly come face to face with any particular leaders before he became a Pokémon master except for the rulers of Mirage Kingdom in Hoenn. "Well, I guess it has its benefits."

The three made their way out of Tinker Town, but instead of the night sky, Ash and Misty found themselves indoors with countless braziers illuminating the smoothly paved streets and buildings. The city was much more wide open than Stormwind and much more heavily guarded. Almost every entrance to a pathway or building had two dwarf guards each and numerous others patrolled the roads.

"Uh, Larien, why can't we see the sky?" Misty asked, almost sounding ridiculous for doing so.

Larien laughed. "Ironforge was constructed inside the heart of a mountain itself," she elucidated. "It's the safest place to be since it's so difficult for any enemies to penetrate. During the Second War, the dwarves lost many of their forts, but this stronghold, their capital, was never even breached."

"I can see why," Ash stated almost matter-of-factly. "It does feel safer here with all these guards walking around."

"You haven't seen the best part yet," Larien said with a smirk. They rounded a corner and she pointed toward what she meant as soon as it came into view. "Behold, the Great Forge!"

The Pokémon trainers could only stare in awe watching colossal pails pouring molten metals from suspended railings high above into pools of lava below. A path cut through the middle where a giant anvil stood, blazing in the heat of its surroundings.

"The dwarves have always been skilled at smelting and shaping minerals," Larien explained. "This city is the ultimate example of their skills."

The three of them continued on along the south side of the Great Forge until reaching the midpoint where the path intersected. Larien turned left into a large room, saluted the guards, and gestured for Ash and Misty to follow.

"This is the High Seat," she described, turning her head to the throne in front of them. "And that dwarf up there is King Magni Bronzebeard, the Lord of Ironforge. Today he told me he'd wait for me to deliver my findings from Outland before retiring to his chambers. Give me a moment to speak with him and I'll be back to escort you two to the inn."

Ash and Misty nodded, watching Larien walk up to the throne and kneel down to bow before the king. He kindly gestured for her to stand, and she did with thanks.

"This is amazing," Ash whispered to his wife.

"Yeah it is."

"And I can't believe how much Larien has been helping us."

"We'll repay her somehow," Misty promised. "It wouldn't be right if we didn't."

Ash placed his arm around her waist and pulled her to him, to which she responded by leaning her head against his shoulder. They stood there for a moment in silence, allowing their closeness to comfort each other. As strange as this new world was, they knew that as long as they stood together, they would be able to brave whatever lay ahead before they could find a way home, just as they had done countless times on their Pokémon journey.

The young couple broke their embrace when they noticed Larien walking toward them with the king himself.

"Ash, Misty, this is His Highness King Magni Bronzebeard," Larien introduced, presenting the dwarven king to the Pokémon trainers. "I have told him about you and where you came from. He has a few things he would like to discuss with you."

Ash and Misty kneeled down to bow but were met immediately with a quick remark from the king to get up. "No need for that, young lads," he assured them. "Larien is an exalted member of Ironforge. I consider her and her friends my equals."

Larien's face turned red slightly before letting out a small chuckle. "I need to be going," she said to the Pokémon trainers. "I have to deliver another message to the night elf capital of Darnassus before I can rest for the night. His Highness himself has volunteered to escort you two to the inn. He'll tell you everything along the way."

"Okay," Misty answered, extending her hand to shake Larien's. "Thank you so much for everything Larien. We owe you both our world and yours."

"No need Misty," said the mage. "I'm still looking forward to learning more about your world. We'll meet again soon."

"Take care of yourself, Larien," said Ash. "See you soon!"

"I will. Have a good night, you two!"

With those words, Larien walked out of the throne room, leaving the young couple with the King of Ironforge.

"She's a good lad," King Magni remarked. "Never turns down an opportunity to aid the dwarves or the Alliance. She's done so much for us, and I trust her with any task."

"Yeah, she and her friends saved our lives," commented Ash. "We can't ever repay her for that."

"She was very humble when she told me about that as well," added Magni. "But anyway, let's walk to the inn. I can tell you two are tired."

The three headed out of the throne room and walked toward a narrow pathway. Ash had a thousand questions he wanted to ask the king, but he knew openly speaking with a leader in such a manner would not be wise. He decided to keep silent while walking.

King Magni though did not. "So Larien has told me you two are from a world full of creatures known as Pokémon?" he asked.

"Yes Your Highness," Ash replied. "We're Pokémon trainers ourselves."

"Please, call me Magni," he said. "Well, I have good news for you. Lady Jaina Proudmoore, leader of the Alliance forces across the Great Sea in Theramore, has a good degree of knowledge about your world. She studies more than any of us and she would be delighted to meet you. You could provide her with valuable information in our battle against the Burning Legion."

Ash looked over at his wife who gave him a smile, knowing exactly what he was thinking.

"We'd be delighted to help in any way we can," he stated.

"Fantastic!" Magni exclaimed. "Rest here for tonight. Tomorrow, I'll have someone escort you two to Theramore. In the meantime, make yourself at home in Ironforge."

"Thank you sir," the young couple said simultaneously.

They walked out of the pathway and across a bridge that spanned across a pit of lava before arriving at the inn.

"Make sure you two don't go outside dressed like that," Magni remarked, noticing their tropical clothing. "It may be nice and toasty in here, but outside in Dun Morogh, the snow always blankets the ground."

He entered the inn and came back out not a minute later with two keys.

"Here is your room," he said, handing the young couple their keys. "Make sure you get a good night sleep. You'll need it for your trip to Theramore tomorrow."

"We will sir," Misty promised him, "and thanks for helping us."

"My pleasure lads," Magni said beginning to head away. "Come to the throne room when you wake up tomorrow. I'll be waiting."

"Okay."

They waved goodbye to each other. Ash took his wife's hand and headed up the stairs.

> > > > > >

"Incredible isn't it?" Misty sighed, making herself comfortable against her husband's chest. "An hour or two ago, we were in Pommelo. Now we don't even know where we are."

"Well, we might as well make the most of this situation," Ash stated, pulling up the covers before wrapping his arms around her waist. "We're fortunate to have met a few friendly faces. If it were only demons, we would've lost our lives by now."

"Yeah that's true."

A rather uncomfortable silence fell upon them before Misty broke it.

"Ash, do you really think we'll be able to go home again?"

Ash froze, thinking for a moment. Was he even sure? He had no idea how this world worked. Yet he knew that he hadn't lost his faith, and faith was what guided him to a Pokémon master's title before.

"Yes," he answered her honestly. "I know we will. We'll return home and we'll start our new lives together."

"I guess I'm more pessimistic than you."

"Have faith Mist," he said, giving her a loving embrace. "It'll happen."

"Yeah, if you say so," she smiled. "God Ash where would I be without you?"

"Living with your sisters in Cerulean?" he teased and was met instantly with a playful slap on his hand.

"Don't remind me," she giggled.

Another silence came. Ash tried to make the ease any tension she may have been experiencing by moving his head downward and planting a few kisses along her neck. He heard a few soft moans coming from her lips and took them as a welcoming message. He tried to intensify the scene, but was slightly surprised when he felt her resist slightly.

"Ash," she whispered, barely audible. "Would you mind if we, you know, wait a few days before making love?" Although her back was turned toward him, she could sense a look of concern in his face as she spoke those words. "I mean, after everything that happened today, it really takes the mood out, you know?"

"Yeah, I understand," he comforted her. "Honestly, I feel the same way."

"I just want our first time to be perfect," she added. "And if the mood's not right, then the time probably isn't either."

"I do too Mist," he replied. "Don't worry, I understand completely."

"Thanks Honey."

"Good night Mist."

"Good night Ash."

The young couple fell into a peaceful slumber, their first night together as husband and wife. Yet this did not mean their minds were not full of thoughts about all the events that had happened, and even more significantly, those about to come. Neither knew what lay ahead for them in such a strange world, and neither could be prepared for any of it.

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: Well, so much for the promise of keeping chapters short. Like the previous chapter, I had more for this one planned, but thank god I cut back. I'll write chapter 4 soon. In the meantime, let me know your reactions! Feedback, feedback, feedback!


	5. Chapter 4: Ironforge

DISCLAIMER: No copyright laws list me as an owner of Pokémon or Warcraft. While I'm using their ideas for my story, rest assured that none of this is getting me any rewards aside from reader feedback. 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: I'm still eager to find out how most of you like the story so far. I know people are reading it based on how many hits it has received, but less than a handful have provided me any feedback. Your opinions matter highly for me; if I need work somewhere and you point it out, you help me write better next time, so please let me hear what you think.

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 4

Written by daBOSS

* * *

It took Ash a few seconds to realize why everything looked the same when he woke up, even though he knew he'd slept through the night and into the mid-morning hours. After all, a city built within a mountain never received any sunlight even if it blazed outside. 

Ash gazed at the figure of his wife in his arms as she turned herself a full semicircle so that she now faced him. Yawning, she slowly opened her eyes to meet his gaze.

"Hey," he whispered lovingly.

"Hey," she answered with mutual affection.

"How'd you sleep?"

"Surprisingly comfortable, considering everything that's happened," she said, pulling herself forward to embrace him.

"Me too," he exhaled.

A few moments of silence passed while the two indulged in the closeness of each other. For awhile, their minds forgot about the day before and only concentrated on the embrace.

"Ash," Misty broke the silence. "Do you remember a year ago this day?"

"Of course I do," he smiled recalling the memory. "I remember every detail."

> > > > > >

(Flashback)

Ash was nervous. Dear god, he had never been this nervous! Team Rocket had tried to capture his Pokémon countless times, but he was never this nervous when Pikachu found itself in an electric-proof contained area. He had battled hard to reach the world's top ranked Pokémon master position, but the anxiety level he experienced walking into those battles paled in comparison to his current emotions. He was thankful that the summer day was unseasonably cool or his entire body would have been coated in sweat.

Misty was coming to Pallet Town tonight. It wasn't anything unusual. Although they had been a dating couple for years now, they maintained a long distance relationship with her running the Cerulean Gym and him concentrating on his Pokémon League duties. Yet they always found time to visit each other whenever one of them became free. Tonight, she was to make another trip to Pallet Town and enjoy a cozy evening with him, but this time he had a surprise for her that he had been planning for weeks.

Worried thoughts raced through Ash's mind as he turned off the shower and dried himself. What if the surprise didn't go according to plan? What if he didn't hide it well enough? What if Pikachu couldn't…no, he knew Pikachu better than that, and Pikachu was not one to fail at these things.

The doorbell rang. Ash quickly slipped on his shorts and a clean shirt and walked downstairs to answer it. To others, it may have been nothing less than a miracle that elation almost completely replaced anxiety by the time he reached the door, but Ash knew that despite the unusual plans for the night, Misty's presence alone was enough to calm his nerves.

He opened the door and there she stood in a low-cut dress that reached her ankles and a trimmed, strapped top that left everything except her chest bare. Her orange-red hair ran halfway down her back and was not styled in any manner. He had witnessed this sight so many times before, but he never once believed it was anything less than the most beautiful.

"Hey you," she smiled and whispered as they embraced.

"Hey," he responded, closing his eyes and savoring the feel of her body. He cupped her face slightly and their lips met for a few seconds.

"How've you been?" he asked once the kiss broke. "How's the gym?"

"Good," she answered. "The trainers coming in are getting tougher, but I still manage to win almost every battle. How's work at the League?"

"It's great," he said. "I think our next Indigo tournament might be the best one in years."

"That's good to hear," she responded, giving him a loving smile. "So what are we doing tonight?"

"How about a walk up north along the river?" he suggested, hoping that the way he said it didn't alert her to anything. "We could take a stroll along its banks and enjoy the sunset together."

"Sounds wonderful," she grinned, offering her arm which he gladly took. "Let's go then."

Arms and hands interlocked, the young couple headed north through the quiet streets of Pallet Town and into the wilderness chatting about old times and laughing away at the memories. Soon enough, a small river merged into the setting and ran alongside the road, and after a few more paces, the two came to a seemingly insignificant location that meant the world to them.

"Here we are again," said Ash, knowing that both he and Misty had pretty much memorized the entire setting. There was the rock she sat upon that day fishing to take her mind off her runaway from home, and there was the spot where he landed with an injured Pikachu when she pulled him out. Of course, there was where her bicycle was parked, the same bicycle he'd wreck that would become the beginning of an everlasting friendship.

"Yeah," she sighed contentedly. "Hard to imagine it's been nine years already."

"Time flies when you're in love," he whispered into her ear.

She smiled tenderly at him and pulled him to the rock, where he sat and took her into his arms. She positioned herself sideways on his lap and hooked an arm around his neck, using the other hand to trace down his cheeks. Leaning in, she placed her lips upon his for a small but delicate kiss before leaning against his shoulder and resting her head comfortably. Unbeknownst to her, he flashed a victory sign with one hand while holding her by the waist.

"Pika pika!"

The small cry diverted her attention for a moment. She looked up toward a nearby tree to see the yellow rodent bouncing around happily on one of its limbs.

"Pikachu?" she quizzed, obviously puzzled. "Ash, what's Pikachu doing here?"

"Exploring," he said, trying to hide the nervousness in his voice.

Misty didn't see through him and instead waved to Pikachu, who greeted her back. It was certainly not like Ash to allow his Pokémon to wander off alone and explore the wilderness, but then again this was Pikachu after all, the same Pikachu who was with Ash from day one and who had made Ash the top ranked Pokémon master he'd been for two consecutive years now.

"(Hi Misty, I found something in this abandoned Hoothoot hole)," the electric mouse beamed. "(I think it's something you'd like.)"

"Really?" she asked, now surprised and pondering the contents. "Can you bring it down for me?"

"(Of course I can)," Pikachu chirped. He ran into the hole and came back seconds later with a tiny object in its front paws. "(Catch this!)"

Misty stood up from the rock and cupped her hands out as Pikachu tossed the item from the tree. She ran forward and grabbed it, then looked back up and thanked Pikachu. He returned her thanks with a victory sign. When the Pokémon noticed her eyes had diverted to the object, he scampered back into the hole and poked his head out to witness the event about to unfold.

Ash stood up. This was it. This was the moment he'd been anticipating for weeks. He couldn't have any doubts hinder what he was about to do. It would be less than a split second before she found out that the object was…

"A ring box?" he heard her utter. He walked up to her as she opened it and gasped at the gem-encrusted jewel in front of her. A solid white diamond that nearly popped out her eyes was engraved in the middle surrounded by three smaller gems of alternating colors to each of its sides along the ring's rim.

Ash reached out, took the box away from her, and kneeled on the grass. Misty's hands flew to her mouth to cover her emotions, but she could do nothing to stop the tears of joy from flowing.

"Misty," Ash began, "I…"

He suddenly realized he couldn't remember the words he had been rehearsing for the past few weeks. He had planned this moment down to the very core, including the speech he was supposed to be delivering right now, but his nerves got the best of him and a scan through his memory for the speech revealed blanks.

This was not good to say the least. Ash had sworn he would not permit anxiety to prevent him from his goal, but now that was exactly what was happening. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then decided he'd forget about his prepared speech and speak directly from his soul.

"Misty," Ash tried again. "Nine years ago at this very spot, a flaming redhead fished me out of this very river. As my token of thanks, I ended up stealing and wrecking her bike in a frenzied state of panic." He paused for a moment to hear her emit a small laugh. "But as big of a crime bike theft is, that redhead wound up stealing something even more precious from me." He stood up and took her hands in his, then lowered his voice. "I don't want my heart back Misty. It's yours to keep as long as you promise me one thing: give me yours to treasure forever. Marry me."

Even though she knew those words were coming, Misty could do nothing to prepare. Upon hearing them, she lost control of herself and collapsed into his arms, tears now cascading down her cheeks and soaking his shirt. Yet throughout this period when her elation reached a pinnacle she had never even known to exist, she still managed to utter the one word he wanted to hear all along.

"Yes," she sobbed. "Of course I will."

She could only cry harder as she felt him slip the cool piece of jewelry onto her finger before locking his lips upon hers in a deep, fiery kiss that seemed to last years. Atop a tree a few meters away from them, a small yellow creature gleamed and squealed a delighted "pika!"

(End Flashback)

> > > > > >

It didn't take long for Ash and Misty to discover that Ironforge was much different during the day than at night. While a few people wandered the city's commercial district just to the east of the inn where they passed through the night before, the area was so crowded during the day that traversing the football field-sized region took over ten minutes. Adventurers ran back and forth between the bank and the auction house, which were located across from each other around thirty meters apart, and traders of all sorts patrolled alongside guards crying for business.

"Fresh bread, cooked this very morning!" one dwarf woman shouted.

"Trying to sell a Bow of Searing Arrows and a Phantom Blade!" hollered a night elf.

"Enchanting your weapons and armor for free if you provide materials!" screamed a gnome.

Ash tried to tune them out while weaving through the crowd, hand clasped with Misty's, but the noise was so loud that he couldn't even hear his own wife less than one meter behind him yelling for him to slow down. They eventually made it across the crowded section and into the tunneled pathway connecting commercial district with the Great Forge. From there it was a quick walk to the High Seat.

"Ah, good morning Ash, Misty," King Magni greeted upon seeing them at the doorway. "Come, come join my daughter and me for breakfast. Did you enjoy your rest?"

"Yes we did," said Misty. "Thank you, sir."

"My pleasure lads," said Magni. "I'm always happy to help."

The young couple joined the two dwarves at their breakfast table, where they were treated to omelets, cornbread, and milk.

"This is my daughter, Princess Moira Bronzebeard," Magni introduced presenting the young dwarf lady to the Pokémon trainers. "She's the heir to Ironforge's throne."

"Hi Princess Moira," Misty greeted.

"Nice to meet you," Moira said in a rather nonchalant tone, which was met immediately with a displeasured stare from her father.

"You'll have to excuse her," said Magni. "She's under much stress right now. She's been intensively preparing for the day when she'll take the throne."

Ash studied Moira's face for a few seconds and found hints of grief, regret, sorrow, and self-hatred scattered within. He looked over a Misty, who turned her head toward him and acknowledged with her eyes that she recognized the same traits. Both wondered what was triggering such negative emotions, but they decided that this was not the time to become overly curious. They quickly finished their breakfast and followed King Magni to his throne. Moira quietly returned to her chambers.

"All right you two, here's what I have planned for today," said Magni once he sat down upon his throne. "First, I noticed you came without your baggage, so I've requested that the lads who run the tailoring shop bring over some clothes for you to try on. They should be here any moment. Do not worry about payment; I've paid them all for you."

Ash and Misty looked at each other and turned back to Magni.

"We can't let you do that sir," said Ash. "Please, let us pay you back…"

"You will pay me back when you help us fight the Burning Legion," Magni cut him off. "Your services will be valuable for the safety of both your world and Azeroth. If for all that, I can only offer you a few gold worth of clothes, then it should be me who ought to feel guilty."

Ash was about to protest further but King Magni raised his hand to stop him.

"Ash, you two are our guests here," he said. "The dwarves treat our guests with dignity and respect. We don't ask for things in return."

Just then two dwarves stepped into the High Seat carrying armfuls of clothing. They kneeled before King Magni, who told them to get up as usual, then diverted their attention to Ash and Misty.

"By request of the King of Ironforge, these are our gifts to you," said one of them, handing the clothes to Misty. "You may try them on in the next room and see which ones you like. Choose as many as you wish."

"Any you do not choose will be donated to charity," Magni added. "Now go. Once you're finished, report back to me. I will give you the rest of the information."

The young couple decided it was best not to say anymore on the matter, since this was the king after all and he was very persistent.

"Okay," Ash answered. "We'll be back." With that he took Misty's hand and headed for the other room.

> > > > > >

The two emerged from the door and walked into the throne room ten minutes later, having selected their clothes. Misty walked up to Magni and handed her pile to him and thanked him before returning to Ash. Magni looked over to the two dwarves who ran the tailoring shop and transferred the clothes over.

"Make sure John Turner receives them," said Magni. "He'll see to it that they get to the Stormwind orphanage."

"Of course, sire," they assured him before departing the throne room.

Magni beckoned Ash and Misty over.

"Now then, the next step is to get you two over to Theramore," he informed them. "The trip is across the Great Sea, and you'll need to catch the ship that leaves from the docks of Menethil Harbor. To get to Menethil, you'll need to take a gryphon out of Ironforge."

He looked up at the faces of the Pokémon trainers and saw their confused stares.

"Don't worry, I've already got someone who volunteered to escort you," he said. "He'll take you all the way." He looked over from left to right. "Teknikal, it's time to go."

There was no response. Ash and Misty looked around the room, noticing that no one was around except guards and two assistants.

"Ugh, Teknikal, you do this every time," the king said, exasperated. "Just come out and escort these two to Theramore already!"

The king was suddenly sapped and stunned, unable to move. His head leaned toward his left shoulder and he just stood on his feet swaying his entire body in place. A man covered from head to toe in red and black appeared out of nowhere behind the king, clutching his chest in laughter.

"TEKNIKAL!" Magni shouted, almost fuming. "THAT'S NOT FUNNY ANYMORE!"

The man just laughed away. "Oh man, that never gets old," he said through hysteria. "I get you good every time!"

"You'd better take these two away and get out of my sight right now, you filthy rogue!" Magni exclaimed. "Because if I still see you once this sap wears off, you're so in for it!"

"All right, all right, I'm sorry," the man said, showing small signs of concern. "I'll go." He walked over to Ash and extended his hand. "I'm Teknikal, a human rogue."

Ash was still bewildered by what had just happened, so shook the man's hand and made his introductions with a small degree of caution.

"Follow me," Teknikal directed. "And don't worry about Magni. He'll be fine. Sap wears off after one minute at the latest."

Misty looked over at Ash, who had the same uneasy expression on his face, but followed Teknikal out of the High Seat anyway. They turned right and only walked a few meters before Teknikal stopped.

"This is the gryphon roost," Teknikal introduced. "The gryphon is a half-eagle, half-lion creature that has aided the Alliance in countless wars of the past. They were perfect for our aerial battles. Now that the wars are over, they help transport us around Azeroth. And now you're going to take your first gryphon ride."

Ash and Misty watched Teknikal walk up toward a dwarf wearing goggles.

"Ah Teknikal," the dwarf acknowledged when he saw the human, "where are you flying today?"

"Menethil Harbor, Gryth," Teknikal answered, "but I'm escorting some friends as well. Could they go first?"

"Absolutely they can."

Teknikal beckoned Ash and Misty over while the dwarf walked to a gryphon and spoke to it. It nodded eagerly and flew from its nest, stopping in front of the Pokémon trainers.

"Hop on and hang on," Teknikal directed. "The bird will do the rest."

Ash walked up first and sat on the gryphon's back, finding its reins and clutching them in his hands. Misty followed, sat down directly behind her husband, and wrapped her arms around his waist. Teknikal and the dwarf gryphon master noticed that they were ready.

"Menethil Harbor," the dwarf said to the gryphon. "Off with you!"

In a flash, the gryphon took off, triggering gasps from both Ash and Misty. They found themselves soaring through a tunnel high above Ironforge and out its front gates, into the snow covered region of Dun Morogh. Neither had a fear of heights, but given the speed of the gryphon at the altitude they were traveling, it was difficult for two first time riders not to shiver from something other than the cold.

Putting their fears aside, the young couple opened their eyes and gazed at the majestic landscape below. They were outside of a city for the first time in Azeroth, and the beauty of the world glimmered when viewed from above.

The two relaxed, finding comfort in being so close to each other while riding the gryphon and tried to memorize every detail of the landscape beneath, watching as Ironforge Mountain faded into the distance. This was the true beginning of their adventures in Azeroth.

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: Well, I swore to keep it short, so once again, I had to reduce the content of this chapter and spread it into the next one. I'd just like to take this time and say that if you find any mechanical errors (grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc.), please let me know. I want my stories to be easy to read and not eyesores. I'll get the next chapter up as soon as possible. In the meantime, send me your feedback. Thanks for reading!


	6. Chapter 5: Theramore

DISCLAIMER: Must I repeat this every chapter? Please get the message if you haven't already: I own neither Pokémon nor Warcraft and unless a divine miracle is performed, I never will. Nothing written in this story is for profit. Quit trying to find ways to sue already! 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: I'm really stretching this story. When I first started writing, I imagined it to be no more than seven or eight chapters, but due to my revised decision to upload shorter chapters, seven or eight will only be a fraction of the whole thing. Hopefully I'll be able to keep you all intrigued throughout, because if you start falling asleep, it really says something about my writing abilities (or lack thereof). Anyway, keep reading and continue to let me hear what you think.

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 5

Written by daBOSS

* * *

With a small tug, the ship set sail from Menethil Harbor and began its long journey west across the Great Sea to the continent of Kalimdor. Ash stood atop the stern, Misty in his arms, and watched as Menethil Harbor drifted into the distance. The sun was not out on this day and the sea breeze provided the young couple with a comfortably cool feeling. Though they were not the only ones aboard the ship, they had the stern to themselves, since most adventurers preferred riding on the main deck instead.

Footsteps broke their moment of solidarity. The young couple turned around and saw the man escorting them, the human rogue who called himself Teknikal, climb up the ladder and step up onto the stern deck.

"Hope I'm not interrupting anything," he said. "It'll be about a half hour before we reach Theramore. Feel fortunate you're traveling aboard more modern ships now, because this trip used to take weeks to months."

Still not too certain of his opinions about Teknikal, Ash squeezed his wife's hand tightly and decided to ask some questions.

"Uh, Teknikal…" he began.

"Please, just call me Tek," the rogue said with a smile. "All my friends refer to me as 'The Tek.'"

"Um, okay then, Tek," Ash tried again. "What was that all about earlier in Ironforge? How did you appear out of thin air? And why did you disorient King Magni?"

Teknikal was unable to fight back his laughter upon hearing Ash's questions. "Ah, don't worry too much about it Ash," he tried to say in a reassuring tone. "I'm a rogue. As such, my most important skill is to be able to enter stealth mode and walk around undetected and unseen. Basically, I sneak around, strike quickly with a flurry of attacks, then stealth again."

"Wait, so that means you can just disappear and no one will be able to spot you?" asked Misty.

"That's right," Teknikal beamed proudly. "Without that ability, I'd have nothing."

"What about what you did to Magni?" Ash pushed on, unwilling to let him dodge the topic.

"Ah Magni, I get him good every time," Teknikal chuckled. "That move is called sap. It takes out my enemy for a short while so they can't do anything. It works when I have to fight more than one enemy." He began cracking up again trying to continue. "As for Magni, every time he calls me up for some quest, I sap him as a sign of greeting."

"He didn't look too pleased about it," Ash remarked.

"Yeah, well, he thinks it's gotten old," Teknikal admitted. "I still find it funny though. But that's actually why I'm helping him out with this escort."

"Huh?" pondered Misty aloud.

"Truth to be told, as a rogue, I'd rather wander around the world in stealth mode and pickpocket my enemies for cash," Teknikal admitted. "But currently I'm only honored with the dwarves. I want to have a higher standing with them, so I volunteer to do their quests a lot. My constant sapping of their king certainly doesn't help my reputation, but I make up for it by completing their quests."

Ash thought about those words for a second and elected to give Teknikal the benefit of the doubt instead of interpreting them to mean the absolute negative. He continued his questions.

"How did you become a rogue anyway?"

"Ah, well, truth to be told, I did some not-so-decent things when young," Teknikal answered, a hint of nervousness in his voice. "But I did them for the best. I was born into a very poor family. We barely made enough money to pay the rent, let alone feed ourselves, so I wound up having to steal food from others to feed everyone. I'm still surprised to this day that I was never caught, so I guess you could say I mastered the art of theft."

Ash and Misty looked at each other, discovering that their consciences were both experiencing the same conflicted feeling. There was no denying that Teknikal's actions were crimes, but it was understandable that he'd take extreme measures if his family's survival depended on it.

"My family was killed during the last invasion of the Burning Legion," Teknikal continued, now in a tone more somber than before. "I managed to escape with my life, but it was never the same. With nowhere to turn, I wound up enlisting with Stormwind and thus my life as an adventurer for the Alliance began."

Ash and Misty heard the feeling of sorrow in Teknikal's voice as he recalled the memory and chose to not push the subject further. Teknikal, noticing the young couple's change of expression, quickly walked forward to reassure them.

"There's no need to feel for me guys," he said. "I'm very happy as an adventurer. I'm aiding the Alliance, I've made a ton of friends, and I can travel the whole world without being afraid of anything. The class trainers have been more than helpful in teaching me all there is about being a rogue."

Before either Ash or Misty could react, the sound and sight of lightning came from off in the distance. The three looked toward the starboard side of the ship and noticed the storm.

"That's the Maelstrom," Teknikal pointed. "It's a violent, swirling whirlpool almost half the size of a continent and powerful enough to sink entire fleets. It was created when Kalimdor split into two during the Great Sundering ten thousand years ago in the immediate aftermath of the first war against the Burning Legion. The night elves succeeded in defeating the Legion then, but not without consequences."

"We're not going to hit it are we?" Misty asked concerned.

"Nah, we always steer clear of it to the south," Teknikal replied. "The storm might reach us though so it's best to take cover."

Sure enough, rain began to fall. Teknikal quickly led the Pokémon trainers off the stern deck and into the cabin beneath.

"We're halfway across the Great Sea now," informed Teknikal as the three found refuge in a spot along the walls a few meters away from the other adventurers. "We'll be in Theramore in about fifteen minutes."

Misty looked out the window and watched the sea for the remainder of the trip, her hand never leaving her husband's. She heard him discuss other topics with Teknikal, including their recent marriage and a bit about the Pokémon world, and interjected with a few comments of her own once in awhile. For the most part though, her mind relaxed and focused on the movement of water seen through the window.

The Maelstrom quickly faded into the distance and the storm subsided, giving way to clouds and eventually a small hint of sunlight. Soon enough, the ship slowed down and all passengers aboard headed for the main deck. Ash and Misty followed Teknikal to the port side of the deck and peered toward the horizon. Gradually, a large walled city appeared floating atop an island elevated to the level of the ship's deck.

"There it is," Teknikal presented. "There's Theramore Island, headquarters of the main Alliance forces on Kalimdor."

The city became clearer as the ship approached, docking in the colossal harbor. Traders of all forms were scattered along the piers, loading, unloading, and moving cargo everywhere. Seagulls chirped from high above while a few pelicans swam searching for fish in the waters below.

"It's the only bright spot in this region," informed Teknikal as the three stepped off the ship with the other adventurers. "Right outside of Theramore is Dustwallow Marsh, where all sorts of dangers lurk. Alliance forces out on patrol there constantly must be aware of the overly aggressive wildlife and the Horde village of Brackenwall nearby. There's also the Black Dragonflight, Azeroth's first major corrupted group, having set up camp in the southern part of this region. While you're here, make sure you stay within the city and never walk outside its walls."

Ash and Misty nodded obediently. Hand-in-hand, they followed their rogue escort through Theramore's busy streets and into the heart of the city, where a giant keep stood next to a small fortress. Soldiers dressed in plate mail armor shouted battle cries outside the fortress, sharpening their skills by attacking propped up dummies.

Teknikal led the young couple up the winding steps of the keep, where he was greeted with an occasional hello from some of the guards. They finally reached the top of the tower where a tall, blonde woman dressed in purple and white robes stood talking with two others. She noticed the newcomers walking up the stairs and waved in their direction. Teknikal waved back and walked up to her with the Pokémon trainers following behind.

The woman turned toward him. "Good to see you again Teknikal," she greeted. "I understand Magni assigned you to escort the Pokémon trainers to Theramore?"

"Yes Lady Jaina," Teknikal answered. "Here they are. Ash, Misty, this is Lady Jaina Proudmoore, ruler of Theramore and supreme commander of all Alliance forces in Kalimdor."

"Nice to meet you Lady Proudmoore," said Ash, shaking her hand.

"Pleasure's all mine," Jaina replied, switching over to Misty. "I've studied so much about your world, but I'm always eager to learn more."

"Well, I must be going," said Teknikal. "The Cenarion Circle wants rogues for a special assignment, so I need to head to Silithus and see what's up." The rogue walked back toward the stairs and turned to wave at the crowd he was leaving behind. "Ash, Misty, you two take care and good luck! I hope to see you two again soon."

"Thank you for your help Teknikal," Misty replied. "I know we'll meet again. Take care!"

Teknikal leaped from the stairs and vanished into thin air. Ash and Misty diverted their attention back to Jaina.

"This is Archmage Tervosh," Jaina said, presenting a man in yellow robes to the young couple. "He's my right hand man in Theramore."

The three exchanged greetings.

"And I believe you already know this warlock," Jaina continued as the tiny figure stepped in front of her. "Viviane told me she saw you two come through the portal last night."

"Viviane!" exclaimed Ash and Misty simultaneously before Misty continued speaking for both of them. "Wow, we finally meet! If not for you and your quick moves, we both would've been goners."

The gnome warlock, still with her face covered by the horned purple hood, blushed underneath her headgear.

"Aw, I was just doing my job," she said. "Don't make me blush in front of Lady Jaina."

Jaina could only let out a small laugh at the scene in front of her. Then footsteps at the stairs caught her attention.

"Larien!" exclaimed Misty again, seeing their new mage friend from the previous day emerge.

"Hi guys," she greeted wholeheartedly. "Viviane told me you two were scheduled to come here today. I wanted to stop by to see if there's anything I could do to help."

"Well, we're just getting started," Jaina explained. "So make yourself comfortable and let's get down to business."

The six of them took their seats, five situated in a semicircle with Jaina in the middle.

"First thing, before we get to the Burning Legion, I'd like for all of us to hear something about the world in which Ash and Misty came from," Jaina guided, diverting everyone's eyes to the Pokémon trainers.

"Well, our world is full of creatures known as Pokémon," Ash began his explanation. "As humans, we coexist with these Pokémon, but we're of completely different species, unlike the humanoid races in Azeroth." Ash paused for a moment, watching as Jaina and Archmage Tervosh furiously wrote down his words. "Humans capture and train Pokémon all the time. Some catch them and keep them as pets, while others battle with them. Still others have dedicated their entire lives to researching and studying Pokémon, since even though we've coexisted for ages, we don't know everything about them."

Jaina finished her writing and looked up at Ash. "Okay Ash, that much I've been able to decipher from my studies about worlds beyond ours," she said. "Could you tell us more about these Pokémon themselves? What are their basic attributes?"

Ash explained many qualities of Pokémon to the group, including their seventeen types and how each had strengths and weaknesses against others. He described the histories of the creatures, mentioning that many are legendary and perform tasks beyond the capabilities of any human. He acknowledged that when properly trained and raised, they could become extremely powerful. Remembering the Togepi his wife once had, Ash added that treatment of Pokémon from trainers could determine the level of power each Pokémon possessed.

"Interesting, very interesting," Jaina mumbled aloud while writing. "How do you know so much about Pokémon, Ash?"

"Well, I'm currently the top ranked Pokémon master in the world," he replied relatively embarrassed. "And having a wife who is the supreme water Pokémon master and a renowned Pokémon nurse doesn't hurt either."

Jaina's eyes lit up. "Pokémon master?" she beamed. "Doesn't that make you're the most powerful trainer out there?"

"That's correct."

"Wow, I've read quite a bit about the process trainers must endure to achieve the master's ranking," informed Jaina. "It takes years and years. And now sitting across from me is the person who holds the number one rank? I must say I'm more than honored to have you in Theramore."

Ash's hand flung to the back of his head in an awkward manner, his face now turning crimson red. He'd never been able to reply to compliments well unless they came from Misty, since he couldn't reward anyone else with kisses, hugs, and nights out.

"You'll be even more valuable to us than we first imagined," Jaina continued. "Seeing as how your world has never been exposed to the Burning Legion's power, I don't know if your Pokémon are strong enough to handle the Legion's forces, but your knowledge about your world could very well come in handy."

"Well, what can I say but thank you Lady Jaina," Ash responded, the redness in his face having not completely vanished yet. "We'll do what we can to help."

"Good to hear," Jaina remarked. "And once this ordeal is over, we will be able to get you home. Viviane brought me the dust she collected from the portal last night, so you need not worry about not having a route home."

"Thank you very much Viviane, Lady Jaina," said Misty.

"Don't worry," Jaina smiled. "The Alliance will never treat its guests poorly." She then put away her notes and took out another notebook. "Now let's move on to the next part. Larien and Viviane, what have you found out about the Burning Legion's recent activities in Outland?"

"Unfortunately, there's no new information," Viviane answered. "The only thing we can conclude is that the portal the two dreadlords opened last night was an attempt to bridge Outland with the Pokémon world, but that's a given already. Larien and I snooped around the area early this morning and found some evidence suggesting that they were planning on sending a demonic army through that portal, though it's not too conclusive."

"Let me see what you found then," said Jaina.

Larien reached into her pocket and pulled out a sealed envelope. "This is from Commander Thatchet in Outland," she told Jaina. "He currently has all the artifacts. He said he'll send them to Theramore soon, but he believes they suggest an invasion."

Ash and Misty listened carefully while Jaina and Tervosh continued speaking with the Larien and Viviane. It was confirmed that the two dreadlords were indeed directly linked to Kil'jaeden and not merely two of his pawns five rungs down the leadership ladder. Jaina complimented Viviane on the strength she possessed, having banished and enslaved two of the most powerful demons in Outland, triggering another blush from the gnome. Once all the information was presented to the two Alliance leaders, Tervosh took the floor.

"Here's what Jaina and I do know as of now," said Tervosh. "In the past, the Burning Legion tried to bring other worlds under their control and use them to attack Azeroth. We saw this in the Second War when they corrupted the orcs and forced us into war. Jaina and I are strongly confident in our theory that this is what they're trying to do again." He looked toward Ash and Misty. "These Pokémon you speak of may not possess enough power individually to do much harm, but if they are as strong as you claim they can become and if their powers are fused together into one form, such energy could be devastating."

"You mean the Legion wants to corrupt Pokémon?" asked Misty.

"We believe so," Tervosh replied. "We believe they're trying to unleash corrupted Pokémon upon Azeroth and destroy both our worlds, just as they did with the orcs a generation ago. And if the orcish corruption was any indication, then corrupt creatures will be incredibly strong and very tough to deal with."

Ash's face grew concerned. "Is there a cure for corruption?" he asked immediately.

Jaina looked at him sympathetically. "Unfortunately, we haven't found a way to remove the Legion's taint in Azeroth other than through death," she answered. "Killing the corrupted creatures has been the only way to free the spirits of the corrupted creatures."

A pale, white color of fear flushed to Ash's face, nearly triggering a mental state of panic upon hearing the news. If the Legion got its hands on Pokémon, it could mean the death of all creatures he'd dedicated his life to cherishing. At the same time, a newfound anger swept through his veins, anger that such a force of pure evil existed in the universe, anger that wanted nothing but to destroy the group and prevent them from harming another soul.

It was of course nothing short of a miracle that, faced with a sudden rush of emotions, Ash remained calm in his speech.

"We'll have to do whatever we can to prevent that from happening then," he said, hiding the panic in his voice.

"That's our plan too," Jaina reassured him. "At this point, the Legion is still concentrated in Outland. Our forces there are keeping them contained. We will act as soon as we see any indication of another portal opening."

Tervosh stood up and walked over to Larien and Viviane, handing them a sealed envelope. "Take this back to Commander Thatchet in Outland," he ordered. "We've learned a lot today and we'll be on alert all the way through."

"Yes sir," the mage and warlock responded with honor. Larien took the note from Tervosh and tucked it away in her robes, then bid farewell to the group as she and Viviane headed down the steps and out of the tower.

"Thank you for your help today as always, Tervosh," Jaina stood up and said to her assistant. "I'd like to speak with Ash and Misty privately for a few moments if I may."

"Of course Lady Jaina," answered Tervosh, bowing before making his way downstairs. "I'll check up on our forces at the tower to the west."

Jaina watched him leave and checked to see that no one else was around, then turned her attention to the Pokémon trainers.

"I hope Azeroth hasn't been too hard on you two so far," she said. "Viviane told me that you two are on your honeymoon?"

"Yes we are," Misty replied. "And Azeroth has been great so far. Being strangers, it's difficult to believe we've been treated so wonderfully at times."

"Congratulations on your marriage," Jaina smiled. "And there's no need to feel guilty about us. Unless you prove to be enemies of the Alliance, you're our friends."

"Thank you Lady Jaina," said Ash.

"No problem," said Jaina. "Now let me get to what I want to discuss with you two."

Jaina sat back down, reaching over to the table and grabbing a piece of paper and pen. She started writing and speaking simultaneously.

"I'm about to tell you two something that I would like to remain confidential between us," she began, never taking her eyes off what she was writing. "While the Burning Legion's forces have weakened greatly ever since their last defeat half a decade ago, they are nonetheless still stronger than the Alliance."

Ash and Misty looked at each other, puzzled as to why Jaina would admit a position of weakness to them.

"You're probably wondering why I'm saying all this to you," Jaina continued as if reading their minds. "I don't want to get caught up in a face off against the Legion alone. I must show a strong face in front of all my peers because I'm expected to lead our forces, but the reality is that we cannot defeat the Legion alone. They have stronger combat units and more powerful magic, and they are capable of wiping out our entire army with only a few of their top units."

Jaina paused for a moment, placing the paper she had been writing on face down upon the table, then grabbed another one and resumed.

"I'm saying all this to you because you two are technically not official Alliance members," she explained. "This means there are tasks I could ask you to do that a normal Alliance adventurer could not."

"What tasks?" Ash spoke up.

Jaina stopped her writing, placed her second sheet face down, stood from her chair, and walked toward the wall. With her back turned to the young couple, she sighed heavily.

"You two know about the Horde?" she asked.

"Yes we do," answered Misty. "Larien and a few others have told us about them."

"We will need their help to ultimately conquer the Legion," Jaina admitted, closing her eyes. "And I will need you two to help me get them on our side."

Ash gasped, remembering Larien's words from the previous day: "if you two were to ever wander into Horde lands, they will try to kill you on sight."

"But won't the Horde attack us when they see us?" he questioned, now on his feet.

"Not necessarily," said Jaina. "They attack you if you are a member of the Alliance, not if you're human. They will certainly not attack you if you wore my insignia, since they know I only hand those to diplomats who wish to negotiate with them. As you may know, we are not officially at war, and they understand that I've always been trying to preserve as much peace as possible between our two factions."

Jaina walked up to the Pokémon trainers and placed a hand on each of their shoulders.

"You two are the only ones I can send," she continued. "Their guards will kill any other Alliance adventurer without giving them a chance to even reveal their insignias. You are very valuable in our war against the Legion and I realize I may be putting your lives in danger, but the Alliance simply cannot handle this alone."

Ash looked over to Misty and was met with a small but confident smile. He remembered his early traveling days and how he'd brushed with death so often, from the time he leaped into the waters of the Safari Zone trying to recover a Team Rocket bomb to his hypothermia as he lay motionless in the sea just before Misty rescued him and he helped summon Lugia. Walking into Horde territory would be simply another risk, and as his once young and naïve mind said, "the good always wins."

"Count on us Lady Jaina," Ash beamed with poise.

Jaina widened her smile. "I knew I could," she said, turning back to her seat and resuming her writing.

"Now listen up," she said, receiving the Pokémon trainers' undivided attention once more. "The Alliance and Horde may see each other as enemies, but there is one Horde member who has been my dear friend ever since we battled the Legion together all those years ago. He just so happens to be their supreme leader, the great Warchief Thrall."

Jaina placed her second page face down on the table and began a third.

"I haven't spoken with Thrall in years, although I know we've both been trying to preserve peace," Jaina continued. "With threats coming from the Burning Legion, the undead Scourge, the Black Dragonflight, the Silithid and Qiraji, the chaotic Old Gods, and others, we've never stopped trying to convince our factions that war against each other was a fight against the wrong enemy."

"But if you haven't spoken to him in years, how would you know all this?" asked Misty.

"His actions have touched all the Alliance leaders," Jaina explained. "You came from Ironforge and you met King Magni Bronzebeard. Did you happen to see his daughter Moira?"

"Yes we did," replied Misty.

"And did you notice how she looked and behaved?"

"Yes, she was very somber and it seemed she hated herself."

"Moira was kidnapped awhile back by the Dark Iron Dwarves, slaves of the Old God Ragnaros," Jaina continued. "She was put under a foul spell by their former leader, Emperor Dagran Thaurissan, and aided him in wiping out Alliance parties that were sent in to rescue her. He even impregnated her with the purpose of having the Dark Iron Dwarves take over the Ironforge throne."

The Pokémon trainers fell speechless. Misty leaned up against her husband, squeezing his hand tightly, and almost broke into tears upon hearing such a woeful tale. As a woman, she knew she sometimes did have to worry about possibly being kidnapped and raped, but to be placed under the control of another and voluntarily offer herself was not something she wanted to even think about.

"We did not find out about the pregnancy until she was rescued," said Jaina. "By the time she snapped out of the spell, her heart was torn apart when she was forced into the decision of whether or not to abort the child. Although it was for the good of the kingdom, as a chaos and destruction ran through Dark Iron blood and the child was illegitimate in the first place, it was nonetheless her own flesh and blood she was carrying."

"I can imagine how she feels," Misty remarked, receiving a sympathetic nod from Jaina.

"She has not been the same since the abortion," Jaina explained. "She continues to blame herself for digging the entire kingdom into this mess, and the best counselors have been unable to get through to her that none of us see it as her fault."

"But where does the Horde fit into all this?" asked Ash.

"It was Thrall who decided that the Horde would help rescue her," Jaina replied. "Thrall sent one of his commanders to gather information, then dispersed a party into the Dark Iron headquarters of Blackrock Depths that successfully killed Emperor Thaurissan and saved Princess Bronzebeard. He didn't have to, but he did. That's how I know his heart is still determined to strengthen the constantly weakening Alliance-Horde ties."

Jaina finished writing, placed the third page face down atop the first two, folded the three together, and inserted them into an envelope. Sealing it, she walked up to Ash and Misty and handed them the envelope.

"This is a letter to Thrall," she said. "It explains everything he needs to know from me, including where you two are from and how I would like the Horde's aid in our future battle against the Burning Legion. Please head to the Horde capital of Orgrimmar and deliver it to him."

Ash took the letter from Jaina and placed it in his pocket.

"We will Lady Jaina," he assured her. "You can count on us one hundred percent."

"Thank you Ash, thank you Misty," Jaina replied, digging into her pockets and pulling out two medium-sized gold-colored crests donning a unique shaped anchor on each. "This is my insignia. Whenever you approach members of the Horde, show this to them and you will not be harmed." She placed the two crests into the Pokémon trainers' hands.

Ash and Misty put Jaina's insignia into their pockets and the three shook hands once more.

"Head to Gryphon Master Balduc near the docks," Jaina instructed. "He's an orange-bearded dwarf in goggles. Ask for a ride to the neutral goblin town of Ratchet north of here. Once you arrive in Ratchet, talk to the Horde's wind rider master and ask for passage to Orgrimmar. He should put you on one of his wyverns and it'll fly you there. Good luck you two, and god speed."

The young couple bid farewell and left the tower, walking toward the dock. Jaina sighed and returned to her desk.

"Please Thrall," she whispered to no one in particular, "for the future survival of two worlds, please do not turn down my plea."

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: Man, I'm seriously having too much fun writing this, and I hope you all are having just as much fun reading it. Ash and Misty are basically finished with the Alliance for the time being. Their times with the Horde begin next chapter. As always, I welcome and encourage you to send me your feedback. Thanks again for reading!


	7. Chapter 6: Orgrimmar

DISCLAIMER: Look at me! I don't own either Pokémon or Warcraft! No seriously, I don't. Nintendo, Blizzard, and some other companies do respectively. There's no profit in writing this story, so suing me gets you nothing and nowhere. 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Those of you who want more AAML scenes, they're coming. I try to fit them in appropriately throughout the story. Those of you who are asking for violent, bloody battles, they're coming too. I'm setting up for them. Remember, the targeted readers for this story are those who know the basics about the Pokémon anime but not necessarily Warcraft, so I'm assuming that everyone who reads this recognizes the Orange Islands but not everyone understands the difference between the Forsaken undead and their Scourge counterparts. I (hopefully) have or will explain everything you need to know about the Warcraft world, and if there's anything else you want to know but don't, just contact me and I'll be happy to tell you. Now on with the show; feedback of any kind, including flames, is highly welcomed as always.

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 6

Written by daBOSS

* * *

"Get out of Ratchet you good-for-nothing sissy!"

Ash and Misty were startled. It had been less than a split second since their gryphon landed in Ratchet and these were the first words they heard. Thinking it was directed at them, Ash turned toward the voice and noticed two incredibly short, long-eared, green-skinned figures wielding maces and chasing after a much taller and muscular green-skinned character.

"That's right, run away!" one of the shorter figures hollered, watching the one they were pursuing dash out of town. "And don't come back until you learn some manners!"

Ash walked with Misty toward them and intercepted them as they were on their way back.

"What was that all about?" Misty asked.

"That no-good orc was trying to attack the night elf over there," one of them said, pointing toward the elf. "I swear this Alliance versus Horde thing is out of control. Ratchet is a neutral trading post of the Steamweedle Cartel and we goblins don't tolerate people who try to spill blood here."

"Well, that answers all my questions," Ash thought. "And I was just about to ask him what he was and what orcs looked like."

The sound of ice triggered Ash and Misty to jerk around and look behind them, where they noticed a giant bull-like man frozen in place and a gnome mage staring at him casting a spell.

"We got another one," one goblin remarked.

"When will they ever learn?" the other sighed, taking off with his partner in the direction of the confrontation.

"You're going to wish you were never born when we get through with you, wuss!" he yelled at the gnome, who quickly used a blink move and fled the scene.

The bull-man broke out of his frost trap and continued about his business. The two goblins ran back once the gnome was out of sight.

"Now then, time is money friends," one of them said to the Pokémon trainers. "What can we do for you?"

"Uh, we're looking for the Horde wind rider master," answered Misty.

The goblin raised an eyebrow. "Hmm, okay, but it's not my fault if you get killed," he responded.

"No worries, we're not members of the Alliance," Ash remarked.

"Good to hear," the goblin sighed. "We have enough trouble dealing with these guys already."

The cracking sound of a sword slamming into armor was heard, drawing another sigh from the two goblins.

"You handle this one," said one of them to his partner. "I'll show them to the flight master."

Ash took Misty's hand and followed the one who volunteered to guide them.

"You guys look like you've got your work cut out for you around here," Ash couldn't help but comment.

The goblin turned his head around and studied Ash's features carefully, a bit surprised by such an obvious remark. "You're not from around here, are you?" he asked, receiving two shaking heads in response. "I see. Well, we're just trying to do business peacefully, and it's tough with this whole Alliance-Horde rivalry going on. Besides, Ratchet isn't even the worst of the four. If you head south to Gadgetzan, those guards are busy dealing with disobedient adventurers day and night."

"Are they like this everywhere?" Misty joined in.

"I'll bet they are," said the goblin. "I frankly don't care if they kill each other around the world, but we won't have any here."

Ash leaned over to his wife. "Getting them to work together looks like it's going to be harder than I first thought," he whispered. Misty nodded in response.

"Here you are folks," said the goblin, standing next to an orc surrounded by wyverns.

"Thanks for your help," said Ash as the goblin began heading back.

"No problem. Keep it real!"

The two Pokémon trainers glanced over the orc, taking into consideration the stark differences between him and humans. He was only slightly taller but significantly more muscular. He had green skin and a seemingly deformed face. His jaw extended out beyond its upper lip with two huge canine teeth almost the size of fangs piercing upward. Cautiously, they approached him.

"Um, excuse me?" Ash was the first to speak up.

"Yes?" he uttered the word as if he was grunting.

"We'd like a ride to Orgrimmar please?" Ash hesitated.

The orc looked at him bewildered, obviously having never had two humans dare to ask for passage to the Horde capital. "Come again?"

"Uh, Lady Jaina Proudmoore sent us from Theramore," Misty spoke for her husband. "She wants us to deliver a letter to your Warchief." She reached into her pocket and took out her insignia, showing it to the orc. "You could say we're diplomats."

The orc took a glance at the insignia and stood thinking for a few moments. He looked back up at the two humans, taking careful notice of their appearance. They wore no armor, only street clothes, and they did not look exactly like a typical human from Azeroth.

"You're not part of the Alliance are you?" he asked.

"No we're not," said Ash.

"Hmm, well I know that Lady Proudmoore won't hand her insignia to just anyone," the orc muttered. "Okay, I'll fly you to Orgrimmar. One word of advice though: keep that insignia around your neck, because the second you land, the guards will be all over you."

"We will sir, thank you," said Ash as he and Misty placed the crests around their necks.

The orc brought forth a giant wyvern, a creature with the head and body of a horned lion and wings of a bat, and Ash hopped aboard with Misty right behind him.

"Orgrimmar," the orc said to the wyvern. "Be safe."

The young couple held on tightly as the wyvern took off to the north along Kalimdor's eastern shoreline, across the savannahs of the Barrens and the dry lands of Durotar toward the orc capital.

> > > > > >

Ash and Misty could immediately notice the difference between Orgrimmar and the Alliance cities as soon as the wyvern flew in. The city was built within a huge winding canyon, and all the houses looked like nothing they knew from back home. Each had either a circular or rectangular red roof and appeared to be designed and built by barbarians instead of those who'd experienced civilization. It was not a discomforting feeling, but the contrasts were glaring.

The wyvern flew along a lengthy rift pathway and over a short drop off cliff before landing in a high tower. Yet before the two Pokémon trainers could even twitch, grunting voices rushed in and surrounded them.

"Guards! Humans atop the wyvern tower!"

"Slay them in the name of the Warchief!"

"Die, human scum!"

The young couple gulped, Larien's words once again echoing in their minds.

"Wait a minute," came the voice of one orc. "Look around their necks."

Slowly, Ash and Misty raised their emblems for the green-skinned guards to witness.

"That's Proudmoore's insignia, and not the lunatic Proudmoore either!" an orcish voice behind them exclaimed. "Get High Overlord Saurfang up here!"

With at least five guards enclosed around them, Ash and Misty could do little but wait. Soon enough an orc wielding a giant twin-bladed axe and dressed in heavy silver-colored plate-mail armor walked up to the tower. He pointed toward Ash.

"You two," he barked. "State your names and business with the Horde."

"Um, I'm Ash and this is my wife Misty," Ash said slowly. "We've been sent by Lady Jaina Proudmoore to deliver a letter to your Warchief."

"Hand me the letter!" the orc demanded.

Ash put up no resistance, reaching into his pocket, pulling out the envelope, and handing it over. He looked on as the orc inspected the seal, recognizing Jaina's signature and stamp.

"Very well then, I'll take this to him," said the orc. "Guards, move aside. You two, come with me. And for your own safety, keep your mouths shut as we're walking."

Ash felt his wife's hand gripping him tighter, knowing exactly why. Though he didn't know too much about the history of the Alliance-Horde rivalry, it was obvious that the words of everyone from Larien to Jaina rang true: humans, as perceived to be part of the Alliance, were not welcomed in Horde lands.

Slowly, they followed the heavily armed orc down the spiral ramp of the tower and into the heart of Orgrimmar below, where they were met with stares of confusion, bewilderment, and suspicion from various guards and adventurers. Ash tried not to look, but seeing as how the Horde races bore gargantuan contrasts in physical appearance to those of the Alliance, it was difficult not to steal a few glances.

There were the now-familiar green-skinned orcs. There were huge hoofed bull-headed humanoids that Ash guessed were tauren. There were tall and thin humanoids with elf ears, stretched chins and noses, and feet with two giant toes on each; "trolls," thought Ash. Finally, there were figures that looked like decayed, walking corpses; "Forsaken undead," Ash remembered Larien's words.

"I'm High Overlord Saurfang," Ash and Misty heard their escort say as he rounded a corner and led them through a darker, less crowded section of the city. "I watch over Orgrimmar in the name of the Warchief. I don't care who you swear your allegiance to, but let me warn you now that if you defy the Warchief while you're in Horde lands, you'll face my merciless wrath."

Both Ash and Misty suppressed the urge to verbally lash out at their guide, knowing it would be irrational and only exacerbate the situation. Many of the questions they had could be reserved for Thrall. After all, if he was who Jaina said he was, they could expect better treatment from him than Saurfang or the guards who almost tried to kill them.

The darker road turned into light once more and Saurfang led the two Pokémon trainers into a fortress marked "Grommash Hold." They walked straightforward through the first room, catching the eyes of a few more orc guards and continued until they reached the end of the second. Atop the throne stood a huge orc geared in heavy black plate armor with giant gold-rimmed spiked shoulder pads and carrying the largest hammer the Pokémon trainers had seen to date. Like their first encounter with Jaina, he was also speaking with two others: another orc wearing a long braid down his back and covered in a wolf's head helmet and an incredibly tall troll in orange Mohawk hair wielding a sharp blade.

"Warchief," Saurfang said, diverting everyone's attention. "These two humans came to Orgrimmar wanting to speak with you."

"What business do they have?" asked Thrall, slightly annoyed at being disturbed.

"They claim to be delivering a message from Lady Jaina Proudmoore in Theramore," answered Saurfang.

"Jaina?" gasped Thrall, immediately focused on the new issue at hand. "We haven't spoken in years. It's been far too long. Hand me the message, Saurfang."

Saurfang walked up and bowed as he gave Thrall the note he took from Ash and Misty moments before. Slowly and carefully, Thrall opened the sealed envelope. It did not take long for his eyes to widen upon reading the first few lines.

"Saurfang, you are dismissed," he directed. "Thank you for bringing this to me. Nazgrel, Vol'jin, we will finish our matters later. Right now, I would like to speak with these humans."

"Yes, Warchief," the three said simultaneously before walking away. Nazgrel, the other orc, returned to his table off the left side of Thrall's throne. Vol'jin, the troll, headed back to his corner of the room. Saurfang left the fortress.

Thrall read through the first page of the letter before looking up to the young couple holding hands and standing a few meters away.

"Ash and Misty, I presume?" he asked, quickly receiving nods. "Welcome to Orgrimmar. I hope Saurfang wasn't too intimidating. Most of the Horde can't stand humans, regardless of allegiance."

"We've been meaning to ask," Misty spoke up, "why is that?"

Thrall gave a long, drawn out sigh while continuing to read the letter. "Come to my chambers," he instructed. "I'll explain everything there. Vol'jin, knock on my door if anyone needs anything."

"Of course Thrall," the troll replied.

Thrall opened the door behind his throne and entered with Ash and Misty following. Closing the door behind them, the Warchief gestured for everyone to sit down at the table beside his bed. The young couple sat side by side while Thrall took the opposite end.

"I know what you two are going through," Thrall began. "You're homesick. Jaina wrote that you two were the ones who came through the portal last night. The Horde sent a party to investigate, but the portal had disappeared by the time we got there. This is an alien world to you, and you wish to go home as soon as possible."

Neither Ash nor Misty replied. Thrall had spoken the absolute truth. Though Azeroth has treated them well, they both yearned for home.

"We orcs are sometimes homesick as well," Thrall continued. "Like you, Azeroth is not our native homeland."

"Where did you come from?" asked Ash.

"Today, our former home is known only as Outland," Thrall answered, hearing gasps from the two. "At one point in time, we lived in the world of Draenor. We were a proud race that embraced shamanism, but that all changed when the Burning Legion discovered us."

"The…Legion…" Misty croaked.

Thrall placed the third page of the letter down, now finished reading, and resumed speaking. "The Legion corrupted our race. Almost every orcish clan leader drank the cursed blood of Mannoroth, which sealed our fate as slaves to our demonic masters. We were brought into Azeroth through the Dark Portal to wage war against the humans. We had turned into bloodthirsty savages who sought nothing but combat and conquest. That was how the Horde was born. As a result, that was also how the human-led Alliance was born."

Having stared away from the humans this whole time, Thrall turned toward them and gave them a sympathetic look.

"We may have re-embraced our shamanistic heritage here on Azeroth, we may have founded ourselves a new home in Orgrimmar, and we may have become steadfast allies with the tauren and trolls, but this will forever be an alien world in our eyes," he said. "This is why I knew I could trust you as soon as I read from Jaina's letter that you were not natives to this world. The orcs understand everything about being displaced from home, but we're not as fortunate as you; we can't go back."

A sudden jolt of compassion swept through Ash and Misty. Neither could imagine the feeling of never being able to return home, never to see their families, friends, or Pokémon again. Yet Thrall and the orcs were forced to swallow such a feeling every day. Though this did not explain their hostility toward humans, the orcs deserved some sorrow.

"Draenor was torn apart after our defeat to the humans," Thrall continued. "A corrupt warlock named Ner'zhul tried to open portals to other unspoiled worlds, but their energies ended up ripping Draenor's fabric of existence. All that remains of Draenor are large floating chunks of debris known as Outland under the control of the Burning Legion."

"But how did you get from then to now?" asked Ash.

"My father, Durotan, was the leader of our clan," said Thrall. "During our war against the humans, my entire family was murdered by members of other orcish clans after we refused to drink Mannoroth's blood. I was only an infant at that time, and to this day I do not know how I was spared."

Thrall leaned back in his chair, tilting his head up and trying to recall the memory.

"The Alliance succeeded in defeating the Horde due to excessive fighting from within," he continued. "At that point, I had been found by a human named Aedelas Blackmoore and raised as a slave. His sinister heart forced me to escape, and I eventually united with some of the Horde's leaders during our war against the Alliance. We set out and freed our fellow orcs from human controlled internment camps, swearing to never be held as slaves again, and created a new Horde free from the demonic bloodlust curse."

Ash and Misty were hanging onto every word of Thrall's tale, being reminded of their own adventures from when they were younger. Of course, they never lived in a war-torn environment, but there were plenty of times when they had to fight for survival.

"It was at this point when a mysterious prophet appeared and told us that our destiny lay in Kalimdor," Thrall continued with his story. "We later found out why he had sent us there. The Burning Legion had created the undead Scourge under the command of Ner'zhul, who was now the Lich King, and spread a toxic plague that turned all the inhabitants of the northern kingdom of Lordaeron on the eastern continent into mindless undead servants. Using the Scourge, the Legion reinvaded Azeroth and set out to destroy the World Tree, the source of the world's energy, located atop Mount Hyjal in Kalimdor. If they destroyed the tree, Azeroth would be shattered."

Thrall closed his eyes as he described the epic battle about to come.

"The prophet made us realize that we had to unite with the Alliance if we were to save Azeroth," he said. "Jaina's troops had been driven out of Lordaeron and led to Kalimdor as well, and that was when we joined together in arms along with the night elves at Mount Hyjal. We battled fiercely, never giving in, until the powerful spirits of nature rose and helped us utterly destroy their leader, Archimonde the Defiler. Much of Kalimdor had been corrupted already, but the World Tree was saved."

"So that's how you and Jaina became friends," Misty remarked.

"Yes, and we almost lost our friendship in the aftermath of the war," Thrall replied. "With the help of the tauren and trolls, whom we became allies with along the way to the Battle of Mount Hyjal, the orcs found a new home here in these barren lands we named Durotar. We had made peace with the Alliance, but that peace was shattered when naval commander Daelin Proudmoore, Jaina's father and a renowned hero in their war against the orcs, landed and attacked Durotar. Jaina's attempts to convince him that the Alliance and Horde were no longer enemies fell on deaf ears, and to ensure that peace remain, she aided us and helped defeat her father. For her loyalty, Jaina to this day remains a dear friend of the Horde."

"But how did the feud begin again?" asked Ash.

"It was rather inevitable that some fighting between our two factions would ensue once we were all settled," Thrall stated simply. "There have been multiple generations of hatred between the Alliance and Horde. Humans have never forgiven the orcs for what they did during the war, and orcs have never trusted humans after Daelin Proudmoore's invasion. Yet despite all this, Jaina and I do our best to maintain the peace between us."

"It must be quite the challenge," Misty murmured.

"That's correct Misty," Thrall responded. "And I'm so thankful you brought me a letter from her today. Communication between us is nearly impossible nowadays due to factional enmity."

A knock at the door diverted everyone's attention.

"Warchief," spoke the island-accented voice of Vol'jin through the walls, "dere be a member of da Argent Dawn here to see you."

"I'll be right out," Thrall called to him. "Tell him to wait a few minutes for me." He turned to Ash and Misty. "It's getting late. I'll have someone escort you two to the Orgrimmar inn tonight. I'll think about Jaina's request and let you know my decision tomorrow."

"Okay, thank you Warchief," Ash said graciously.

"Please, you don't need to call me by my title," Thrall humbly replied with a grin, opening the door and guiding the two out.

> > > > > >

"So you're a hunter and priest couple?" asked Misty.

"Ya mon," said the male troll. "I be da one shootin' and she be ma healer."

"Hey dehr," the female troll greeted them.

Misty and Ash were now walking back along the winding roads of Orgrimmar toward the inn, which was quite close to the flight tower where they first landed. Thrall had appointed two trolls to escort them, a hunter named Taee and his priest wife Tullah. Thrall had also broadcast a message to the entire city notifying it of the human presence and ordering everyone to leave them alone, and it surprised the Pokémon trainers that the Warchief's words alone were enough to completely change the behavior of everyone in the city. No longer were they giving awkward and uncomfortable stares; every person was now carrying about their business in a normal manner and acting as if the two humans were friendly members of the Horde.

"Hmm, we haven't heard anything about the hunter or priest classes," Misty commented. "What's so special about them?"

"Da priest be da best at healin'," said Tullah. "Da shaman an' druid know healin' too, but da priest outheal dem all."

"How many schools of magic do you know?" asked Ash.

"Two," Tullah answered. "We do holy an' shadow."

"What about you Taee?" Misty questioned. "What can hunters do?"

"Ah, we hunters be da ranged damage class, mon," Taee replied. "Dis here cat be my pet. He keep attention of enemies while I shoot from far away."

Ash looked over at Taee's cat, a large white saber, and instantly recognized the expression on its face from spending so much time with Pokémon.

"I think your pet is hungry Taee," Ash remarked.

The troll peered at it. "Ah yes it is, t'anks mon," he acknowledged. "I feed it now."

Ash and Misty watched Taee open his bag, retrieve a small whole roasted bird of some sort, and toss it to his saber, who almost gulped the whole thing down in an instant. It tugged at the meat ravenously, chomping away and savoring every bit of flavor.

"Seeing him makes me miss all the Pokémon we left back home," Misty sighed.

"Ah right, da Warchief say you have pets too," Tullah realized. "He say you call dem da Pokémon?"

Misty looked at the priest dressed in sky blue and dark white robes carrying a glittering yellow staff on her back. "Yeah we do," she replied. "Our world revolves around them."

"Maybe you show us what one o' dem look like," Tullah suggested.

"Sure thing," responded Misty, reaching to her waist, grabbing, and tossing a Pokéball. "Come on out Corsola!"

In a flash of red light, the coral shaped rock figure materialized in front of the two couples. Observing its surroundings, it looked back at its trainer with a puzzled stare.

"It's okay Corsola," Misty reassured it. "They're our friends. They just want to see you."

"Dat one be cute mon," remarked Tullah. "Dey not all like dis, no?"

"No, Pokémon comes in all forms, shapes, and sizes," Ash told her. "And even if they look the same, they may be very different in terms of abilities and personalities."

"Dey pretty amazin' den," Taee commented.

"Yes they are," Ash grinned. "It's why I've spent my life training them and learning about them. They're my best friends."

Misty coughed purposely in her husband's direction upon hearing his last words.

"Okay, my best non-human friends," Ash winked at her, triggering small giggles from the troll couple.

The four trotted through Orgrimmar's commercial district, which was still relatively active with adventurers and traders at ten o'clock in the evening, and reached the inn. Taee asked the innkeeper for a room and handed the keys to Ash and Misty.

"You take care and be careful, mon," said Taee. "If you be needing anyt'ing, you ask da Warchief for us."

"Thank you so much Taee, Tullah," Ash replied, shaking their hands before Misty did the same. "We will."

> > > > > >

Ash could feel his eyelids dropping. The entire day's activities made him as tired as a Snorlax after a large meal. After all the travel and excitement, it felt good to finally be lying in a nice comfortable bed for a well deserved rest. Slowly, he gave in and allowed his body to drift into unconsciousness.

A small twitch from the figure in his arms startled him out of his nearly asleep state.

"Mist, still awake?" he whispered.

A small but noticeable "yeah" was the response.

"What's on your mind, Hon?"

Misty rotated her body ninety degrees and lifted herself up so her face was now aligned with his. "I was thinking about Taee and Tullah."

"Oh?" Ash had to admit to himself that he was slightly surprised.

"Ash, they looked so happy together," Misty muttered. "It was as if being with each other really brought out the carefree spirits within them."

"They're just like us, Mist," Ash replied. "We have much in common. We're both adventuring couples. We love traveling and facing new challenges."

"Yeah," she sighed contentedly. "I just hope we can be like them in a few years. I mean, I don't want our fire to only be a newlywed flame."

"You shouldn't be thinking that way Mist," Ash reassured her. "I love you, and that love is eternal. I've loved you for a decade now, and my feelings for you are just as strong now as they were when I first realized them. And I know they'll stay that way forever."

Misty couldn't help but let a small tear roll down her cheek. Once again, she had some doubts about the future, and once again, the man she loved was there for comfort.

"I feel the same way Ash," she whispered, barely audible.

He smiled and gave her a kiss on her forehead.

"Go to sleep," he said gently. "Who knows where we'll end up tomorrow?"

"Yeah," she sighed, making herself comfortable against his chest. "Good night Honey."

"Good night."

It took only two days for the young couple to befriend both factions, and although they did not know it yet, that friendship would soon prove critical in saving both Azeroth and their own world.

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: Well, that makes another chapter. I hope those of you who weren't too familiar with the history of Warcraft got a brief taste of it now, although if you want the full story, you'll have to check out Warcraft websites for them. Anyway, I promise more AAML and actual battles coming. For now, continue sending me your feedback. Happy reading!


	8. Chapter 7: Mulgore

DISCLAIMER: I own neither Pokémon nor Warcraft. Nintendo and Blizzard do respectively. That is all…What? You were expecting a long disclaimer? 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: I must be totally boring you. Six whole chapters written and I've received so little feedback. If you really don't like the story, please let me know. I'll do what I can to fix it. After all, if you're not going to read it, what's the point of me writing it, right? Now, let's get on with the show.

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 7

Written by daBOSS

* * *

Though Orgrimmar provided more maneuvering room, Ash and Misty found out that the noise in the commercial district was just as bad as Ironforge. It was the mid-morning hours and they were on their way back to see Thrall, only to be greeted with the great boom of Orgrimmar's early bird trade atmosphere. Like Ironforge, adventurers and other retailers ran back and forth between the bank and the auction house, rarely watching where they were going. Everyone seemed to have something to sell, from armor and weapons to reagents for spells and enchants. Of course, being Pokémon trainers from a different world, neither Ash nor Misty needed half of those things, and the other half they simply didn't understand.

Having taken the road once and back, the Pokémon trainers easily navigated their way through the Valley of Strength (where the inn and commercial district was located) and the dark winding roads of the Drag. They found Thrall's fortress, Grommash Hold, in the Valley of Wisdom, exactly where it had been the previous day. As they entered this time, the guards no longer eyed them with suspicion and confusion.

"Ah, good morning you two," Thrall greeted them as soon as they walked into his throne room. "I hope you enjoyed the comforts of our inn."

"Good morning Thrall," Misty greeted back. "Yes we did. Thank you. We slept very well."

"Good to hear," Thrall smiled while speaking. "Now then, I will treat you to breakfast in a little while. First, I'd like to address a few matters."

Thrall pulled out Jaina's letter along with several more documents. Ash and Misty approached his desk once they were beckoned.

"I want you to know that I have made my decision, and I will provide the Alliance with the Horde's help should we ever need to battle the Burning Legion again," Thrall informed the two. "However, I do not want you two to return to Theramore. Instead, I will figure out a way myself to get the message to her."

"Why not?" Ash asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Jaina wrote in her letter that Theramore was not a safe place for you two to stay, given the threats just outside the city's walls," Thrall answered. "She mentioned that you two would play a great role in helping us defeat the Legion, and that keeping you safe for the time being needed to be priority number one, so she asked me to find a place of refuge in Horde lands for you until you're called upon again."

"Does this mean we're staying in Orgrimmar?" asked Misty.

Thrall shook his head. "I would keep you here, since you are very valuable to us, but Orgrimmar isn't necessarily the safest place either," he replied. "Yesterday, immediately after you left my fortress, a member of the Argent Dawn informed me that the undead Scourge have pulled all their scattered forces from Tanaris to the far south and reassigned them to Azshara, directly north of here. They are planning to launch a full scale assault on Orgrimmar and the Horde is rapidly mobilizing to strike at them, but if the unfortunate happens, we can't afford to have your lives in jeopardy."

"The undead Scourge?" muttered Ash. "You mean the same undead Scourge created by the Burning Legion that you told us about yesterday?"

"That's correct," Thrall replied. "They are independent of the Legion now and have been planning an assault on Azeroth from their Frozen Throne headquarters on the continent of Northrend for some time. They've always been present in Lordaeron on the eastern continent, where our Forsaken undead allies are fighting an incessant war with them for their freedom, but just recently, they've revamped their forces and have launched direct attacks on various regions of Azeroth. Tanaris and Azshara were two of these regions, but as of yesterday, they're rerouting their Tanaris troops to Azshara hoping to sack Orgrimmar."

Misty knew that she and Ash wanted nothing more than to help push back the threat, but there wasn't any way Thrall would allow it. She decided not to bring it up and waited for Thrall's next orders.

"This is why I need to have you two taken away from Orgrimmar," Thrall continued. "It's not only for your own safety, but while you're away, I can put my full focus on this matter." He took a few steps toward the two and unexpectedly winked while flashing a sincere but humorous smile. "Besides, isn't it about time you started relaxing and enjoying your honeymoon rather than having to worry about losing your heads?"

Both Ash and Misty were caught off guard by his last remark and couldn't help but laugh.

"What did Jaina NOT tell you in that letter?" Ash snickered, initiating a small chuckle from the orc warchief.

"I'll be sending you to the tauren capital of Thunder Bluff," notified Thrall. "They are faced with the least amount of threats out of all six capital cities between the Alliance and Horde. I've already told their High Chieftain, my good friend Cairne Bloodhoof, that you'll be coming today, and he's more than happy to take you in. While there, put all the problems of Azeroth behind you and experience the vacation you had in mind before you ended up here. We'll call on you when we need you again."

"That's fine with us," said Ash. "Just remember to call on us if we're needed in any way. We owe both you and Jaina so much for your hospitality."

"Will do," Thrall replied. "Now let's get you some breakfast and send you on the road. Will herb baked eggs, sweet rolls and moonberry juice be okay?"

"Sure they will," the young couple agreed simultaneously.

> > > > > >

The wyvern glided over the mountainous divide, revealing to the young couple sitting atop majestic green plains with trees scattered across. They were now flying west, further inland into Kalimdor, toward the tauren capital of Thunder Bluff, which became visible almost instantly as the landscape changed from savannah to prairie. And what a sight the city was to the young couple: wooden longhouses, huts, and tents of all shapes and sizes dotted four enormous windswept mesas elevated as high as the prairie's surrounding mountain peaks. The wyvern headed for the direct center of the main rise, landing near the top of a tower that looked like a gigantic totem pole.

The two stepped off the wyvern and a tauren standing there the whole time immediately welcomed them.

"Peace, travelers. You must be Ash and Misty," he greeted, receiving two nods from the couple. "I am Bogorran, a tauren druid. I am to escort you to the chieftain's tent where High Chieftain Cairne Bloodhoof has been expecting your arrival."

Ash took his wife's hand and followed Bogorran down the ramp of the tower, taking the first exit and reveling in the sight of the tauren capital as soon as he stepped out. Though every city they've been to except Ironforge was outdoors, none were as open-aired as Thunder Bluff. Stormwind and Theramore's buildings were far too close together creating narrow streets, and Orgrimmar's alleys were quite often concealed in the darkness of the canyon it was built in. Thunder Bluff was perched high above the plains and the much simpler dwellings of the tauren meant the outdoors was fully alive.

It was not a long walk at all, and soon Ash and Misty found themselves in front of two conversing tauren. The elder, carrying a giant totem, was speaking with a younger male who resembled him intensely.

"They are here, Chief Bloodhoof," informed Bogorran.

"Ah, fantastic," the elder responded, turning to Ash and Misty. "Greetings young ones, and welcome to Thunder Bluff. I am Cairne, chief of the Bloodhoof tauren. You will find refuge here from all the stress of the world, so relax and enjoy yourselves."

"Thank you for welcoming us to your home, noble chief," Ash said sincerely, taking a bow in the process. "Your city is magnificent!"

"Ah, what respectful travelers we have," Cairne beamed. "Thrall was wise to send you. I believe I will very much enjoy your company."

Cairne then looked over to Bogorran. "Baine would like to have a word with you, Bogorran," he told the druid. "Walk with him to Bloodhoof Village. He'll tell you everything along the way. Return to me when you are finished."

"Yes Chief Bloodhoof," Bogorran complied, then followed the younger tauren to the elevators and down to the plains below.

"That's my son, Baine," Cairne said to the humans once the other two tauren were out of sight. "He currently governs Bloodhoof Village down the road to the south of here. I'm getting up there in years and my time is short. He comes to me daily to train so he can one day take my position."

"He's a very responsible young man," Misty remarked.

"Yes he is," Cairne agreed. "And to think I nearly lost him years ago."

The young couple sought a puzzled glace at each other, both with the same question on their minds. Misty read from her husband's eyes that he would allow her to inquire.

"What happened?" Misty asked.

Cairne sighed and smiled, penetrating deep into his mind to recover the memory of the recent history of his people. "We owe our very existence to the Horde," he said. "If not for meeting Thrall and the orcs, we tauren would be an extinct race."

Cairne walked into his tent, motioning for the young couple to follow. The three took their seats on the rug laid out in the middle.

"We tauren were not always a united group," he began his tale. "For centuries, we were nomadic, wandering the plains and hunting for sport. We were tied together only by two shared traits: our respect for our god, the Earth Mother, and our hatred for our sworn enemies, the marauding centaur."

One of Thunder Bluff's honor guards entered the tent and provided each of the three with a cup of goldthorn tea, which they thanked him for. Cairne took a sip and continued speaking.

"The ruthlessness of the centaur drove us to the coast of the Barrens, near present-day Ratchet," he described. "But then the Earth Mother blessed us with the arrival of the orcs. They had recently journeyed to Kalimdor under the guidance of a mysterious prophet. With their aid, we managed to drive the centaur back and claim these grasslands of Mulgore for our own."

Cairne shed a small tear as he recalled the memory of befriending the orcs and allying the tauren with the Horde.

"Thanks to the orcs, we tauren finally had a land to call our own," he continued. "For our gratitude, we fought alongside them at Mount Hyjal and helped them find a new home in Durotar. Then the trouble came."

"Isn't this when Daelin Proudmoore invaded?" Ash quizzed, remembering Thrall's story from the previous day.

"Yes," Cairne nodded. "His presence posed a dire threat to the peace between the Alliance and Horde that had been so difficult to achieve. The orcs and trolls found trouble fending him off on their own, and they came to me to request tauren aid. Yet I could not, for I had been heartbroken."

Cairne shed another tear, this time from a memory too painful to recall.

"Baine had been kidnapped one night," he spoke in a solemn tone. "I had sunk into a depression. When the orcs came to Mulgore, I did not want to help. I only wanted to grief." He raised his head before describing what happened next. "Yet they managed to find and slay the centaurs that had kidnapped my son and return him to me. I was so overjoyed at that moment that I volunteered to travel to Theramore and battle Proudmoore's forces myself. We prevailed, and I thank the Earth Mother every day for the blessings she has granted the tauren race."

"Amazing," Misty found herself murmuring.

"It is, isn't it?" said Cairne. "We are so fortunate to be part of the Horde. Today our lives are completely intertwined with our orc and troll brethren, we are forging an increasingly stronger tie with the Forsaken, and Mulgore is a land at peace. We still face a few minor threats, but our adventurers have no problems keeping them in check. And soon, Baine will be able to take over as high chieftain."

A figure appeared at the entrance to the tent. Cairne whirled in its direction and waved.

"Ah, Bogorran, you're back I see," he greeted. "Would you mind showing our friends around Thunder Bluff? We are to offer our city to them as a vacation getaway."

"Of course Chief Bloodhoof," Bogorran complied. "Ash, Misty, how about a tour of the tauren capital?"

"Sure!" the two exclaimed.

> > > > > >

The city turned out to be a bit scarier than Ash and Misty had first imagined. Some of the walkways along the edges of the mesas had no guardrails to protect anyone traveling along them from the sharp drop less than one step away, and those that did only provided ropes hanging less than a foot off the ground. Even the mesas themselves were linked by nothing but bridges made purely of rope and wood that swayed in the Mulgore winds.

The young couple was sitting along the edges of a small pond just outside the Thunder Bluff inn. Joining them was their tour guide, the tauren druid named Bogorran, and his orc shaman friend Fenrim.

"It's very interesting to hear about these Pokémon creatures you value so highly," Bogorran said to the trainers as they finished describing the world of Pokémon. "It's a very different world from Azeroth. Here we possess so much supernatural powers within ourselves and the wildlife around us isn't as fortunate."

"Could you imagine how strong Azeroth would be if everyone trained Pokémon as well?" Fenrim threw the question out into the open.

"Actually, I think that's exactly why the Titans placed them on another world when they harmonized ours," stated Bogorran. "Power corrupts, and balance is ideal."

"Titans?" asked Misty.

"Yes, the Titans are the creators of most of the worlds," said Bogorran. "They traveled from world to world, bringing peace and order to the endless chaos of the universe. It is the harmony they provide throughout the universe that has attracted the destructive desires of their demonic enemies, most notably the Burning Legion. Your world must be fortunate to have not yet experienced the Legion's terror, because Azeroth knows it far too well."

There was a brief pause before Ash spoke up. "Come to think of it, we may have heard of them," he said. "Mist, remember all those legends we've been exposed to during our days traveling? Many of them mentioned events triggered by the so-called 'creators.'"

"Yes, I remember," Misty nodded. "I remember quite a bit, although I don't think our world has done extensive research about our own creation. Legends there are usually treated as nothing more than fictional fables, and we're still trying to decipher the mystery of the origins of Pokémon."

"Ah, fear not, you will get there," said Bogorran. "Azeroth has only begun its work as well, and we're fascinated almost daily from discoveries."

A reagents vendor walked past them. Bogorran and Fenrim halted her and purchased a few items, then returned to their original sitting positions.

"So Bogorran, Fenrim," Ash was the first to speak. "Misty and I have been finding out about all these classes you adventurers seem to be, and we've yet to hear about the druid and shaman. What's special about you two?"

The orc and tauren chuckled slightly upon being hit with such a general question.

"What's not so special?" Bogorran asked, now donning a mischievous grin. "Watch this."

He stood up, faced Ash and Misty, and immediately transformed himself into a bear, letting out a small cry in the process. He heard the two humans gasp and changed back to his original form, only to turn himself into a horned lion just as quickly. Their eyes were staring at him in awe, and he surprised them once more by becoming a cheetah.

He was still laughing when he shifted back to tauren form for the last time. "And I'm not just about being feral," he declared. "I can also cast a few spells and heal you better than anyone except a priest."

"Wow," Ash heard his wife exhale. "He's just like a Ditto, but with even more power."

A sigh came from Fenrim's direction, and the Pokémon trainers were quick to whirl their heads toward him.

"Typical druid," the shaman said matter-of-factly. "You always think you're so great. Why not duel me and show our guests just how powerful you really are?"

"Deal!" exclaimed Bogorran. "Let's go!"

Slightly confused and slightly bewildered, Ash and Misty followed the two to the elevators and down to the plains of Mulgore below.

"You two ready?" asked Fenrim. "Now I'll show you the powers of a shaman."

Fenrim threw out three totems: one emitted a strange aura he basked in, one appeared to be replenishing him, and a third was charging up a fireball destined straight for Bogorran. The druid saw it coming and blasted it dead with a sudden ray of moonlight fire, then summoned roots up from the ground seconds later to completely immobilize his opponent.

Bogorran shifted into a bear, charged at Fenrim, and gave him a furious swipe. Unfettered, the shaman smashed the druid with a powerful blow from his hammer and released himself from the roots. Bogorran shifted out of bear form and attempted to root the orc again, only to have his spell be interrupted instantly by a powerful shock. The tauren hit the orc with a beam of moonfire, reshaped into bear form, and charged in to daze his opponent for a short while. Yet by now he had become severely weakened from the fire totem's constant fireballs.

Fenrim slowly cast a spell and healed himself to full health. He took some time before landing a lightning bolt on Bogorran, who shifted out of bear form. Yet when the druid tried the same healing technique, another shock spell instantly interrupted him. Seeing his opportunity, Fenrim moved in for the kill, striking a critical blow with his hammer right as his fire totem launched its final attack.

"Okay, okay, mercy!" Bogorran cried. "You win!"

A devilish smirk donned the orc's face, which quickly turned into an array of laughter. Bogorran healed himself and drank some water from his canteen. Fenrim walked up to the humans.

"So you still think the druid is cool?" he beamed with pride.

Misty was silent, having never witnessed a duel that involved two humanoids. A Pokémon battle was one thing, but this couldn't be described.

"That was incredible," Misty heard her husband utter. "That was more amazing than some of the Pokémon battles I witness everyday."

"Eh, it really wasn't much," said Fenrim. "Beating him is becoming a daily hobby for me now."

"You just got lucky!" they heard Bogorran's voice chime in. "Next time I'll get you!"

"I'd like to see you try," Fenrim continued teasing. "That's what you said yesterday as well…and the day before that…and the day before that."

> > > > > >

The sun disappeared over the western horizon, bringing evening to the mesas of Thunder Bluff. For the first evening in two days, the newlywed couple found themselves enjoying the peaceful nature of the night. As the sunlight slowly faded, the clear night sky revealed itself with the moon and stars brightly shining down upon the plains of Mulgore.

With their hands locked together, the young couple stepped off the elevator onto the main road through central Mulgore. They elected to part from the city for a short time and take a stroll around Thunder Bluff. Cairne Bloodhoof granted them permission as long as they did not stray from the main road, informing them that wolves and cougars were always present on the grasslands. Seeing as such, the two decided to pay Cairne's son Baine a visit in the village to the south, which was directly at the end of the road to the south.

Misty released her husband's hand and slung it over his shoulder while leaning herself closer against his body. She felt his arm encircle her from behind and his hand come to rest upon her waist.

"I'm so glad we get to enjoy this night," she commented. "Even though it's been two days only, it feels like forever since we've had some time alone."

"We'll have to thank Thrall and Cairne for this," said Ash. "Thunder Bluff may not be Pummelo, but it's just as peaceful."

Misty tilted her head upward, giving her husband a familiar look of affection. She expected him to notice and return with a similar expression, but found him staring off into the distance as if deep in thought.

"Ash, Honey, is something wrong?" Misty asked concerned.

"I'm fine," he sighed. "I'm just thinking."

"Thinking about what?"

He looked down and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "Don't worry about it."

"Ash…"

"It's about these last two days," he admitted. "We come to this new world and all of a sudden find out all this new information about some danger in the distant universe that we haven't ever heard of before but could very well threaten ours soon."

He turned his head back toward her and caught her eyes with his.

"I can't imagine what our world would be turned to if these demonic superpower beings managed to get in. What would happen to all the people, the Pokémon…" he paused for a moment, "…and our families?"

"Ash," Misty responded, "this isn't something you should allow to get to you. You've conquered the worst of the worst in the past. You've saved the world countless times. You've dove into life threatening situations without hesitation and come out on top. Why would this Burning Legion be any different?"

Ash closed his eyes upon hearing his wife's words and embraced her gently. "I'm not the same kid with the same blind optimism anymore," he muttered. "Ever since those two demons almost killed me two days ago, I've feared the worst."

Misty was slightly taken aback by this response. Ash was not one to doubt himself. His positive thinking was what propelled him to the top of the Pokémon world. More importantly, it was his positive thinking over the years that helped divert her own doubts and fears and turn her into a stronger woman. It was just one of the countless traits that caused her to fall for him. Even in Azeroth, his ever-persistent hope that they'd return home and find the happiness their marriage sought had managed to steer her clear of sulking over her own worries.

"He's done all this for me," Misty thought. "Well I'm not going to let him think differently just because of one experience, no matter how bad it was."

"Yes you are," Misty whispered. "You are still the same kid."

Ash looked at his wife's face completely puzzled.

"Ash, your optimism is what drives you to be you," Misty somewhat sternly said. "You can't lose that part of you. I understand that you had a terrible encounter with those demons and it nearly cost you your life, but you can't let one encounter change the person you are. If it weren't for your positive mindset, you would've never been able to conquer the toughest challenges on your way to becoming a world-renowned Pokémon master." She took a small breath before continuing. "And if not for your optimism, you never would've helped me realize how special you are and how fortunate I am to be with you."

Ash simply stood there, gazing into her eyes. He could not find any form of speech in his mind to respond to his wife. Though her words were incredibly simple, they struck him directly in his soul.

Not knowing what to say, he swiftly pulled her in and embraced her with all the emotion he could muster. He clung to her tightly for a few seconds before she gently pushed away.

"And remember," Misty added tenderly, "no matter what challenges are ahead, you'll never be alone. I'll always stand by you."

It was as if all his worries were cast away. As he embraced her again to thank her, Ash realized that what truly mattered in the last few moments were not the words spoken, but the person whom they came from. Aside from the woman he loved, no one in his world, Azeroth, or anywhere else in the universe was capable of uttering such simple words and transforming his mood so drastically.

By now they had reached Bloodhoof Village, where Baine spotted them from his post and instantly greeted them, not hesitating to deliver his own "mi casa es su casa" speech. Baine left them alone quickly, understanding that they were on vacation, and the pair settled down at a comfortable spot beside the shores of Stonebull Lake located along the western edges of the village.

As with two nights before atop the Pummelo cliff, Ash allowed his wife to lean back against him to make herself comfortable in his arms. He planted small, sensual kisses across the edges of her neck, triggering a few pleasant moans. He could feel the desire between them build up once more, which was why her sudden movements were rather surprising.

She abruptly turned around and embraced his lips with hers, but pulled away rather quickly and flashed a wicked smile. Slowly, she got up and walked away from him, leaving him with a puzzled look.

"It's warm tonight," he heard her say with her back turned to him. "How about we go for a dip in the lake to cool off?"

"But…we don't have our swimwear," he reminded her, seeing as how they left all their clothes back in the Pummelo beachfront hotel.

He heard a small chuckle escape her lips. "Poor Ash, still just as dense," she teased.

In a flash, all her clothes fell to the grass and she jumped into the lake. She stayed under for a few seconds before popping her head above the surface and sending him a pleading look.

'Come on Honey," she beckoned. "Try and catch me."

Still slightly bewildered by her actions, he slowly stood up and removed his shirt. By now she was already swimming away from him, and knowing the advantage she had to him in the water from all her experience living and working in the Cerulean Gym, catching her was pretty much out of the question.

"You can't get away from me!" he declared playfully. "I'm Ash, the world's greatest Pokémon master!"

The initial shock had now left him. He quickly removed the rest of his clothing and dove into the lake to give chase, smiling as he did so. They played similar games in the Cerulean Gym pool all the time when he visited, so this was familiar to him.

He swam in her direction for about ten seconds before stopping to observe his surroundings. The lake was calm for the most part with his ripples being its only disturbance. He tried locating a head somewhere near him, but there were no signs. Sighing, he pedaled over toward the shore, hoping to taunt her some more.

"Boo!"

The voice startled him right as he neared the shore. A figure popped out of the water directly in front of him, giggling without restraint. Seeing his opportunity, he snatched her by the waist and pulled her toward him, holding her firmly. She struggled lightheartedly to get away, but he strengthened his hold and deprived her of her freedom.

Their small, jocular laughter vibrated around their immediate surroundings, both of them enjoying their moment together. Yet as the heartiness died down, a sensual rush replaced the humor. His hands were still upon her sides. Her struggles stopped; instead, she weaved her arms around his neck and hung herself against him. Their eyes had found themselves interlocked in the same manner as the moments before their first kiss all those years ago.

No words were spoken. Their breathing died down gradually while they stayed in their positions, merely captivated by each other's closeness. Both were frozen, unable to find any willpower to make the next move.

Just as sudden as the transition from playful to serious, Ash leaned his head forward and locked his lips upon hers. Instantaneously, Misty was caught off guard, but she quickly rebounded and returned his kiss with all the desire he had put into it. Both could taste the yearning the other possessed, and both knew that unlike two nights ago, there would be no interruptions this time.

"God, you're beautiful," he whispered, still unable to remove his gaze from her aqua eyes.

"I want you," she spoke back silently, almost begging for him. "Make me yours."

Within the crystal waters of Stonebull Lake and basking under the moon and stars over the clear, peaceful Mulgore night, the young, newlywed couple at last consummated their union of love.

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: No, this is not going to be a lemon. Do remember that it's rated low enough so teens could read. Anyway, I decided to end here on a positive note instead of a cliffhanger, although for those who like cliffhangers, there'll be some in upcoming chapters. Now send me feedback please (e-mail, private message, reviews, etc.)! Your opinions make my day!


	9. Chapter 8: Pieces

DISCLAIMER: Nope, nothing's mine. Nope, Pokémon's not mine. Nope, Warcraft doesn't below to me either. Pokémon is Nintendo's property. Warcraft is Blizzard's. I own the story plot and nothing more. 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: For seven chapters, I've described scenes of information gathering. Well, good news for those seeking more action: all the info has come in and it's now time to decipher it. We're not necessarily at the action parts yet, but the preparations start to heat up in this chapter, so stay tuned. Also, become familiar with the Orange Islands part of the anime series if you are not, since much of the remainder of this story will allude to characters and events from that part of the timeline. Now, on with the show; send me feedback people!

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 8

Written by daBOSS

* * *

Ash and Misty spent the next three days atop the mesas of Thunder Bluff, simply enjoying their honeymoon the way they originally left home to do. There were no walks on the beach, seeing as how they were staying in grasslands, but a trip each day to and from Bloodhoof Village became common. Both were able to put the dangers of Azeroth in the back of their minds while they indulged in their much deserved vacation.

Everything changed on day four.

> > > > > >

"There you are!" Jaina exclaimed as soon as Larien's silhouette appeared from the stairs to her tower. "What took you so long? Thatchet said he'd have the remaining pieces to me by yesterday."

"He went back on his word," Larien replied. "He thought he noticed something and decided to hold them for another day, but he wasn't able to find anything."

Lady Jaina Proudmoore and her assistant Archmage Tervosh had been gradually receiving the physical evidence from Outland during the previous few days. Thrall sent Jaina a goblin messenger to let her know that the Horde would stand by the Alliance should they elect to wage war against the Burning Legion, pushing Jaina full speed ahead in her mission to decipher the Legion's activities. With the evidence coming in slowly, she attempted to uncover the mystery slowly, but that turned out to be useless because she needed everything to come to an adequate thesis. On this day, at long last, the final piece of the discovery arrived in Theramore.

Larien handed Jaina the tiny bag, which she quickly opened and removed the small red and white shards. Jaina placed the shards into the glass container on her table with the others and dumped the soil that took up the rest of the bag in a jar near Tervosh. For a normal person, attempting to glue together the infinite shattered pieces into a whole object once again would be near impossible, but Jaina Proudmoore was no ordinary individual. She was the world's most powerful sorceress, and no one in Azeroth matched her skills in wielding and using magic.

"Stand back Tervosh, Larien," Jaina directed. "I'm going to make this thing whole again. This might be our best clue on the most up to date activities of the Legion."

Jaina closed her eyes and focused her mind on the contents of the container, thrusting both her arms forward to channel her spell. A pink aura emitted from her and struck the container, causing the pieces within to float up and rotate on an invisible axis. Gradually, every last shard came together and glued itself properly in the three-dimensional puzzle. Jaina slowly withdrew her spell, allowing the newly reformed sphere to stop its rotation and situate itself on the bottom of the container once again.

"Is that the object we've been looking for?" Larien asked.

"I hope so," replied Tervosh.

The three looked at the sphere in front of them. It was large, but not to the point where someone required two hands to hold it. One half was red and the other was white, and in the middle where the two colors met, a small button occupied a thick, black dividing line.

Jaina picked up the object from the glass container and examined it closely.

"Where have I seen this before?" she wondered aloud.

"Didn't Ash and Misty carry a few of these on their belts?" Tervosh spoke up.

"Yes, that's it," Jaina agreed. "This must be what they call a Pokéball. It's used to carry their Pokémon around."

Jaina pushed the button and the ball opened, revealing its hollow insides, trying to come up with a hypothesis regarding how such an object ended up broken into multiple fragments upon the grounds of Outland. Perhaps it was an empty ball that belonged to Ash or Misty and broke when they landed through the portal.

She was still in thought when a small insignia near the hinged area along the inside walls of the Pokéball caught her eye. Grabbing her magnifying glass, she made out the image. It was incredibly textured for something so microscopic: a red demon head with horns and detailed facial features all marked on. Jaina recognized it immediately as the emblem of the Burning Legion.

"The symbol of the Legion?" she thought to herself. "Why would it be on a Pokéball?"

Then suddenly, like an invisible freight train that appeared on the tracks a split second before it was to collide with someone standing there, everything hit her hard.

"Oh…my…god!" exclaimed Jaina. "Larien, Tervosh, we have to find Ash and Misty and tell them the news now!"

She started to channel a teleportation spell.

"I'm going to Orgrimmar immediately," Jaina almost hollered. "Tervosh, you're in charge while I'm gone."

"Wait, Lady Proudmoore!" Tervosh gasped, too surprised to say anything else. Never once since her father's defeat had Jaina ever wandered outside Dustwallow Marsh, but now with little explanation, she was sending herself into the Horde capital.

But Jaina did not hear him. She was already gone.

> > > > > >

"It's a human!"

"Get her! Kill her!"

As soon as she landed in Orgrimmar, Jaina found herself surrounded. Orc guards were everywhere, pointing their axes in her face, and she knew that none of them recognized her as an Alliance leader.

"I was too quick to act," she realized. "I should've thought about this first. This is the Horde capital after all, and I'm their enemy."

"Jaina?" a voice distracted all of them. Jaina turned in its direction and saw the figure.

"Thrall," she acknowledged, bowing before him. She knew she would not make it through Orgrimmar's streets, so she had tried her best to teleport herself into his throne room. She had succeeded.

"Let her go!" Thrall cried to his guards. "She means no harm."

The orc guards sheathed their axes and backed away from her. Thrall quickly ran down from his throne and helped her to her feet.

"It's been awhile, friend," Jaina uttered, still a bit shaken from what her sudden entrance triggered.

"Yes it has," Thrall agreed. "What in the world are you doing here? You know you could've been killed."

"It's urgent," she replied. "I have to find Ash and Misty. Where are they?"

"I sent them to Thunder Bluff," Thrall informed her. "The Scourge is attacking Orgrimmar from Azshara. I couldn't keep them here."

"Then I have to go to Thunder Bluff," said Jaina.

"Would you mind telling me what's up first?" asked Thrall. "The Horde is here to help, you know."

Jaina explained her discoveries to Thrall, watching as the Horde Warchief's face turned from confused to the same shock she had moments ago.

"Dear god, you're right," he said when they finished. "We need to let them know right away."

Thrall reached over to his throne and grabbed a gold medallion decorated with the Horde's symbol, placing it around Jaina's neck.

"Here, take my insignia," he said. "Get to Thunder Bluff and tell them the news right away. Come back here and inform me of everything once you're done."

Jaina nodded. "I will Thrall, and thank you."

> > > > > >

A loud knock broke Ash and Misty out of their trance. Having enjoyed their evening before, the two elected to sleep in late. Still tired despite the fact that it was close to noon, they yawned and slowly sat up.

"I'm going to go see what that's all about," Ash said as he kissed his wife. "You wait for me here."

Misty smiled and nodded, lying back in bed. Ash dressed himself in a clean shirt and shorts and approached the door.

"Who is it?" he asked.

"It's Jaina," a feminine voice answered. "And it's pressing. I need to speak with both of you immediately."

Ash could hear the urgency in her voice.

"Misty," he bellowed back toward the bed. "Jaina's at the door. She wants to talk to us."

Misty shot from the bed and put her clothes on. Once she was ready, Ash opened the door. There stood the sorceress they had met days ago, whom they quickly invited into their room.

"All right, I've never come to a Horde city before, but this is too vital to rely on a goblin messenger to deliver to you," Jaina spoke up.

"What's the matter?" Misty asked, feeling the panic begin to rise.

"Ash, Misty," said Jaina, tilting her head upward and looking at the young couple straight in their eyes, "the Burning Legion has already invaded the Pokémon world."

> > > > > >

There was no time to do anything else around Thunder Bluff that day. Ash and Misty hastily grabbed their bags, notified Cairne, and returned to Theramore with Jaina.

"We've been falling right into the Legion's traps all this time," Jaina explained to them upon arrival. "I've gathered all the evidence from Outland, and I still can't believe I didn't figure this out sooner."

Archmage Tervosh handed her the Pokéball as they each took their seats inside the Theramore tower where Jaina worked.

"This Pokéball is embedded with the symbol of the Burning Legion," Jaina described. "Using arcane magic, I've extracted plenty of details regarding the symbol, and we are positive they retrieved it while walking through your world."

"But how did you know they were there in the first place?" Misty quizzed.

"The portal," Jaina replied. "The portal was the key. There are three ways to open a portal to another world. If one has been to that world, collecting dust from a previous portal will provide one with the necessary reagents to reopen such a portal. If one has not, then it is necessary to extract massive amounts of cosmic energies from both the targeted world and the Great Dark Beyond to do so, a la Ner'zhul when he destroyed Draenor while attempting to open numerous portals to new worlds."

Jaina placed the Pokéball back into Archmage Tervosh's hands.

"The third is a two-sided opening," she said barely above a whisper. "This means that there must be parties on both worlds who work together to bridge their worlds together through a mutually constructed portal. It was how the Dark Portal was opened in the first place, bridging Azeroth to Draenor and allowing the then-corrupted orcish Horde to invade."

Ash analyzed her words. "You mean there's someone in our world who opened the portal to Outland?"

"I'm positive," Jaina responded. "Outland has never had any connections with the Pokémon world, and the energies of that portal, while strong enough to pull you through, were nowhere near the strength of a one-party cosmic portal. The only explanation is that someone from your world worked together with those demons to open the portal."

"That means someone's already been corrupted," Misty said softly, realizing the seriousness of the situation based on everything her and Ash had learned in the past few days.

"I'm afraid so," Jaina agreed. "And Tervosh and I don't think it was a coincidence that you were pulled into our world either."

Ash and Misty stared at each other for a second before turning their heads toward two wizards.

"The portal you came through was not a normal portal, but an absorption portal," Jaina explained. "Normal portals do not suck up physical objects and expel them on the other side of the world; you need to walk into them yourselves to travel through them. Whoever opened that portal did so with the purpose of sending you to Outland."

"Wait, but why?" Ash questioned, slightly confused.

"You're the top ranked Pokémon Master, correct?" Jaina asked, receiving a nod. "That means you're the strongest in the world. If you were back at home, you'd interfere with the Legion's plans. If you were in Outland, Kil'jaeden's top lieutenants could dispose of you quickly and eliminate their toughest resistance."

There was now fear and panic within both Ash and Misty. All this time, while everyone had been trying to figure out what the Burning Legion was up to, the Legion itself may have already been terrorizing their home. Having experienced the horror of facing the Legion firsthand, neither wanted to picture the possibilities.

"I know you're worried, so here's the plan Tervosh and I have drawn up," Jaina said, pressing forward. "We will travel to Outland tomorrow and I will use the dust collected from the previous portal to open one back to your world. Be prepared for the worst."

"Tomorrow?" gasped Ash, almost leaping out of his seat. "Why tomorrow? If they're in our world now, we have to fight back immediately!"

Jaina placed a hand on his shoulder and calmed him back down. "We will act quickly, but not rashly," she informed him. "For the time in between, I will issue a call to arms. We will mobilize all able-bodied Alliance adventurers who volunteer into an army and we will go with you. I will send a message to Thrall and have him do the same with the Horde. We are prepared to fight and defend your home, Ash, because we know that the Legion is planning on using Pokémon against Azeroth the same way they tried using the orcs against us generations ago."

"What about us?" Misty asked. "What can we do to help?"

"I will send you two to Darnassus, the night elf capital," Jaina answered. "I want you to speak with their leader, my good friend High Priestess Tyrande Whisperwind. Ten thousand years ago, the night elves were the first race to encounter the Burning Legion, and none are more familiar with the Legion's mindset than they are. I want you to learn as much as you can about them before tomorrow: their powers, their tactics, their weaknesses, etc. Once you have that knowledge, you will be more prepared to battle them."

Jaina and Tervosh stood up, approaching the young couple.

"We know we can count on you two," Tervosh opened his mouth for the first time, "because you can count on us. We promise we won't let you down. The Alliance and Horde are ready to fight for the future of both our worlds."

"Thank you," Misty uttered, shedding a tear. "Thank you both for everything. Ash and I won't let you down either; we guarantee that."

Ash smiled, stood up, and gave a hug each to Jaina and Tervosh before Misty repeated the motion.

"Talk to the gryphon master," Jaina instructed as she escorted the two out of the tower. "Ask for a ride to Ruth'eran Village on the island of Teldrassil. From there, walk into the giant pink portal and you'll be taken into Darnassus. One of their guards will point you to the High Priestess."

"Got it," Ash replied. "Thank you both again. We promise you we'll pay you back somehow."

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: Oh sweet, a shorter chapter! Too bad this took me longer to write than most, but ah well. Whether you're enjoying this or not, send me feedback and let me know. I'd love to hear from you.


	10. Chapter 9: Preparation

DISCLAIMER: There is a long list of companies that own Pokémon, and my name is not on that list. There is another list of companies that own Warcraft, and my name isn't on that one either. I am not making any money from this story.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: This is it, the final "setup" chapter. Yes, I know, I've been delaying the action stuff for way too long, but I promise that it's on its way. Let's see how short I can keep this one; the last one wasn't even 3000 words (huzzah!). As always, your feedback is welcomed.

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 9

Written by daBOSS

"Attention all heroes, the Alliance calls upon you for swift and decisive action! The greatest enemy of Azeroth, the Burning Legion, has returned with a vengeance. A call to arms has been issued for all able bodied individuals to take up arms and join the campaign to rid the world of this threat once and for all. An army will be formed tomorrow morning in Outland and will set out to defeat the Legion in a new world. Any volunteers are to report to Lady Jaina Proudmoore in Theramore immediately for further instructions. Fight with honor for the Alliance!"

Guards had posted the notice over all three Alliance cities, and adventurers of the Alliance were flocking to them. Almost everyone who saw the posters declared their undaunted loyalty and commitment to their faction and rushed to the flight masters without hesitation, bound for Theramore eager to fight.

- - - - - -

"Attention, heroes of the Horde, the call of duty beckons! A new attack from the Burning Legion is imminent, and the opportunity has risen to destroy Azeroth's greatest threat permanently. Able bodied individuals are to report to the Warchief at his fortress in Orgrimmar immediately for the formation of a Horde army tomorrow morning that will travel to a new world to battle the Legion's demonic menaces before they threaten Azeroth. Now is the time for heroes to be made. Fight and bring glory to the Horde!"

Notices quickly shot up around Orgrimmar, Thunder Bluff, and the Forsaken capital of Undercity. Horde adventurers, always dedicated to honor and victory for their faction, rushed to Grommash Hold in Orgrimmar to commit themselves to battle.

- - - - - -

"The leadership doesn't need much to recruit, does it?" asked Ash, well aware of the commotion outside the temple's walls.

"No we don't," answered the night elf high priestess. "We are so fortunate to have adventurers who'll put their lives on the line to serve the Alliance, and I know the Horde does as well. The night elves no longer have a strong military, and the rest of the Alliance's tattered armies have been sent to distant lands, so adventurers are all we can depend on to fight the battles at home."

Ash and Misty sat with High Priestess Tyrande Whisperwind on the second floor of the Temple of the Moon in Darnassus. The thick walls did little to divert the drums of war coming from the outside, where adventurers who had seen the call to arms were swarming to Theramore shouting battle cries.

"The Burning Legion has been tormenting Azeroth for far too long, and they all know it," said Tyrande. "They will give life and limb to see it destroyed."

"But how did it all begin?" Ash asked.

Tyrande's glowing eyes looked toward the young Pokémon master as if expecting such a question.

"Ten thousand years ago, the night elves were the first humanoid race to awaken in Azeroth," she began her tale. "And I was there for it all."

Two gasps came from the young couple's mouths, although Tyrande was not surprised at all by their reactions.

"You…you're…" she heard Misty stutter.

"Yes, I'm over fifteen thousand years old," said Tyrande. "For eons, we night elves cherished our immortality. Today, because of the Burning Legion, we've lost our most precious trait. We had to sacrifice it at Mount Hyjal to destroy their leader Archimonde."

"Immortality..." Ash uttered.

Tyrande smiled and continued. "We awoke and cultivated a civilization unlike any other. Our race spread out across Kalimdor, building cities and temples to worship our moon goddess, Elune. We were ruled by a group known as the Highborne under the guidance of Queen Azshara. It seemed as if our society would flourish indefinitely…that is, until we discovered the Well of Eternity."

The priestess stood, turning her back toward the Pokémon trainers, and placing her hands behind her.

"That well was the source of supernatural energies," she continued. "Our curiosity got the best of us and we tapped the well for its energies. Soon, the Queen and her Highborne rulers began studying and practicing primitive magic. It started as harmless acts, but became excessive and obsessive for them, attracting the attention of the Burning Legion from the Great Dark Beyond."

"They abused their powers?' asked Ash.

"Yes they did," answered Tyrande. "The Highborne was always closely tied with the rest of our society. When magic got in the way, they became more and more secluded. Because the Well's energies were externally channeled, their practices sent ripples of energy into the Great Dark Beyond and caught the Legion's eye. By the time the Legion prepared to invade Azeroth for the first time, the Queen and the Highborne had completely become slaves to magic and willingly let the demons in."

"So that's how the Legion first became aware of Azeroth," Misty said softly.

Tyrande nodded. "Our recklessness brought them in, and once they were here, there was no stopping them. We fought a catastrophic war to defeat them the first time, far more destructive than our most recent battle alongside the orcs and humans. They succeeded in corrupting and mutating a large portion of the night elf race into vile satyrs and snake-like naga creatures, including the Queen and her Highborne. Their eventual defeat split the single continent of Kalimdor into two with a violent Maelstrom separating them. That Maelstrom is where the Well of Eternity originally stood."

"There's one thing I still don't understand though," said Ash. "What's the whole purpose behind the Burning Legion's destructive behavior?"

"It's the power," Tyrande replied. "They constantly seek to increase their own strength in the universe. They believe that the entire concepts of order and harmony are flawed and those who strive to achieve them, namely our Titan creators, must be undone. They are always after the limitless energies the universe possesses, and their hunger became insatiable upon discovering the Well of Eternity here on Azeroth."

Ash and Misty looked at each other, now realizing the Legion's full ambitions.

"That means this goes beyond simply seeking revenge," said Misty. "They're after our world to wreck the natural order and steal our Pokémon's energies for their own destructive desires."

"That sounds like them through and through," commented Tyrande. "Your Pokémon may not channel as much energy as the Well of Eternity, even as a large group, but those energies add up over a long period of time. As long as even a speckle trickles into the Great Dark Beyond, it can easily draw the Legion's attention."

"That explains why it's taken them until now to find us," Ash added, triggering nods from the two women. "Oh god, we can't get back soon enough. To know that they're already in our world and we can't return until tomorrow at least…"

"I know you're anxious," Tyrande interrupted. "Please try to relax. Jaina Proudmoore is one of the best organizers I've ever met. She will make all necessary preparations so you'll be fully prepared for anything upon entry."

Ash took a deep breath, trying to ease his mind. "Okay, I'll try," he replied.

Misty locked her arm around her husband's, tilting her head to get a good look at his expression. Tyrande walked up to the couple and placed a sympathetic hand on Ash's shoulder.

"I can't guarantee you things will be all right," she said with as much understanding as her voice could muster. "But I can promise you that we are fully committed to helping you save your world. Please try to not let it bother you for tonight."

Ash never looked up and only remotely nodded his head.

"I'll have an escort take you to the inn," Tyrande continued. "Larien has already said she'll be here tomorrow morning. You'll be heading back to Outland, where you originally came in, and the portal will be made so you can go home. Elune will protect you always."

- - - - - -

"Glad to see all of you make it," Jaina spoke up the second she spotted the trio. "You didn't get ambushed along the way, did you?"

"We did, but Viviane took care of it for us," Larien smiled. "She just has too much fun with her demon-enslavement spell."

"That's her in a nutshell," Jaina slightly chuckled. "All right, go ahead and take your positions. Ash, Misty, come on up here."

Ash grabbed Misty's hand and approached the sorceress while Larien walked off. She and Viviane had successfully brought them to where the volunteer troops were assembling. Hundreds of adventurers were lined up in two groups, with the Alliance on one side and the Horde on the other. None were facing each other, only turned to the front where Thrall and Jaina stood side by side.

"What are you two doing here?" asked Misty, a bit shocked to see the top leaders of the two factions directly involved in the battle to come.

"The Burning Legion is the greatest threat to both our factions," Thrall answered. "I swore that if we ever needed to face them again, I would see them destroyed myself."

"I still have fond memories of our battle at Mount Hyjal," Jaina added. "I don't ever want to see another top figure of the Legion in Azeroth again. This task is far too important not to pass up."

"What about Orgrimmar and Theramore?" Ash piqued. "Who's going to govern?"

"Vol'jin and Nazgrel will handle the Horde at home while I command these troops," replied Thrall. "I knew this would happen, so they've been trained. I trust that the Horde will be in solid shape under their guidance."

"And Tervosh will command Theramore," said Jaina. "He'll be fine; we've worked together for a long time."

"Plus, our forces may not get along too well, having fought each other numerous times," Thrall informed. "We can't take any chances even with a common enemy as powerful as the Legion. They wouldn't dare defy orders that come directly from us."

Thrall turned and walked a few steps toward the crowd.

"Wait right here with us," Jaina directed the Pokémon trainers. "Thrall is going to give the orders."

The couple nodded, diverting their attention to the Horde Warchief.

"Heroes, heroes, your attention please!" Thrall's voice roared toward the noisy crowd. "Quiet please, everyone! Alliance, Horde, we need your attention now!"

In less than five seconds, the Horde was silent and focused squarely on their leader. The Alliance on the other hand was a different story. Neither Thrall nor Jaina looked surprised, and the latter quickly stood up.

"Heroes of the Alliance, it's time to silence yourselves!" Jaina commanded at the top of her lungs.

This time, the remaining half obeyed without further interruptions.

"Thank you, now listen to the Warchief please," ordered Jaina, receiving a few moans of disapproval. "That is an order, people! The Horde is not our enemy for this ordeal, got it?" Every head nodded. "Good. Thrall, the floor is yours."

"Thank you Jaina," Thrall acknowledged, never taking his eyes off the crowd. "Heroes, although we understand your enmity toward those standing across from you, a greater threat now faces us once again. You have all heard the stories of how all the mortal races banded together at the battle of Mount Hyjal years ago to destroy Archimonde and end the Burning Legion's threat to Azeroth. Although we ultimately won the war, we waited too long to fight back. The Legion is planning on invading once more, but this time, we will strike first!"

The Horde side gave a loud cheer at the words of their Warchief. The Alliance side only mustered a tiny yelp.

"Lady Jaina Proudmoore and I are in charge of this mission," Thrall's voice continued roaring. "As you all know, Jaina and I have battled together on many fields of war, including Mount Hyjal. We have mutual respect and trust for one another. Know this first and foremost heroes: any command from one of us is a command from the other, and any defiance against either one of us will not go unpunished. That means regardless of which faction you belong to, you are to obey us both."

Small whispers could be heard from both factions, but Thrall did not let them interrupt him.

"Jaina will now use the dust collected to reopen the portal to the world we will be entering," Thrall addressed, nodding to Jaina to begin the channeling process. Jaina turned and began her spell. Thrall kept speaking. "Once it is done, we will follow Ash and Misty through as a unit. A number of you have already met our guests during these past few days and are more familiar with their world than the rest. Jaina and I trust you to tutor your comrades when they seek information."

The Warchief looked over at Ash and Misty with a confident and reassuring smile in which they returned, fully understanding his message of complete devotion to their task ahead.

"It is finished," Jaina called out. "The portal is done. Ash, Misty, go on. Once you're safely through, give us the signal and we will follow. And be careful; you may not be returning to the world you remember."

"We will Jaina," said Ash, slowly taking his wife's hand. "Let's go Misty."

The Pokémon trainers stepped into the newly formed gateway, at last able to head home.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Thrall whispered so that only Jaina could hear. "I can sense the spirits of their world through the portal, and they are restless. The Legion is definitely making their presence known."

"I see them, and they've given us the word to follow," Jaina responded. "They look shocked. Their world must have definitely changed from when they departed. Let's go now."

Thrall and Jaina turned to their gigantic volunteer army, estimating that there were a total of around one thousand adventurers. All were focused squarely on their commanders and awaiting orders.

"Heroes, it is time," Thrall bellowed. "None of us know what will happen once we step through the portal, but we will weave out and destroy every agent of the Burning Legion present in the Pokémon world before we return, before they can ever threaten Azeroth again. Remember heroes, from this point on, you are not just fighting for the Alliance or the Horde; you are fighting for the future of order as a whole! FOR AZEROTH!"

"FOR AZEROTH!"

This time, there were no factional divides in the crowd's reaction as every last adventurer cried out in passion and lined up to enter the portal, eager for the war to come.

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: Sweet, less than three thousand words again. First off, my apologies for not getting this chapter uploaded as quickly as the others. I've been getting sidetracked often. I thank you all for sticking with me and continuing to read this story. Let's hope I'm faster next time. And of course, as always, if you have anything to say at all, feel free to provide me any type of feedback. I welcome everything: questions, comments, concerns, fears, threats, insults, suggestions, flames…the whole enchilada.


	11. Chapter 10: Return

DISCLAIMER: The answer is "no." Buzz in if you have the question. What's that you say? "What is 'do I own Pokémon or Warcraft?'" You are correct! Next clue: "Nintendo and Blizzard." Buzz in. "What are the companies who do own the two franchises?" Right again. 

AUTHOR'S NOTES: And now we come to the (much anticipated?) chapter where the butt kicking begins. The wait is officially over for those of you who want action. As for those who want more AAML scenes, I promise there will be more. Now give me some feedback people! I want to hear what you think, no matter what it is you think.

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Through Azeroth – Chapter 10

Written by daBOSS

No, this could not be home.

Ash and Misty glanced at the environment surrounding them. It was definitely Pummelo Island, the same island they arrived on days ago for their honeymoon, yet while the land remained stable, the skies above and the seas around were not. Dark storm clouds raged violently from the once crystal blue sky, shading away any signs of the sun. Gigantic waves crashed mercilessly against the rocky cliffs almost as if trying to tear the land apart, and a rise in the tide had completely inundated the nearby beach that was almost always packed with tourists. It did not take a trained eye to realize that this was no regular weather pattern that swept through another tropical climate zone. These conditions only lived in nightmares.

The last members of the thousand-strong volunteer army from Azeroth exited the portal, gasping with the same shock as the Pokémon trainers. Thrall and Jaina ordered the portal destroyed and the dust collected, severing the link between the new world and Azeroth for the time being.

"The Legion is definitely here," uttered Thrall. "The spirits of this world are restless. I can taste the taint of demon-spawned corruption is in the air."

"I hope we're not too late," said Ash.

"There they are! Ash! Misty!" a voice suddenly hollered from somewhere off in the distance.

Every head jolted toward the voice and noticed a small group of people dashing toward the cliffs where they were all standing. Four of them were the most familiar faces to Ash aside from his wife: his mother, Brock, May, and Max, accompanied by Pummelo Island's Officer Jenny. Pikachu was with them and wasted no time leaping into Ash's arms.

"Oh my goodness, you're all right!" Delia cried with relief.

"It's good to see you too Mom, but why are you here?" asked Ash.

"I'm here looking for you!" she exclaimed. "Where have you been, young man?"

Ash's hand flew to the back of his head, the same gesture he always made out of nervousness. "Uh, it's a long story," he answered. "A few days ago, Misty and I were transported through a portal to another world. We…"

"A few days ago?" quizzed Brock in disbelief. "Ash, you and Misty have been missing for three weeks!"

"What?" Misty interjected.

"Yes, the hotel called your mother three weeks ago and said you hadn't checked back into your rooms for two nights," explained Officer Jenny.

"How can that be? Misty and I only saw a few days pass on Azeroth…"

"Azeroth?" stated Delia with the same confused expression on everyone else's faces.

"I can explain that Ash," Jaina spoke up for the first time. "You see, time passes at different rates in different worlds. A day on Azeroth could be a second or a full month elsewhere. For the average living individual, time is nothing more than a constant ticking of the clock, but in actuality, time is a phenomenon that's as chaotic and disorderly as the universe's natural state itself."

Jenny was quick to step in between everyone, noticing the oddly dressed woman and the army she seemed to be leading.

"Who might you be?" she sternly directed her inquiry.

"I'm Lady Jaina Proudmoore," the sorceress replied. "I come from the world of Azeroth, where Ash and Misty were transported weeks ago through a portal that opened at this very spot."

"They're friends," Ash quickly added, knowing that Jenny would either interrogate the newcomers to death or throw the book at them. "They're here to help us."

The young Pokémon master watched his mother and friends eye the thousand-man army with the same surprised looks he had upon first glance of the bizarre humanoids. Then again, it's hard to imagine someone who wouldn't, having never seen such strange creatures before, let alone in such a large number.

"I don't know what you're up to young man," said Jenny, "Even if you are a Pokémon master, I can't just let you go with nothing for bringing in an entire army."

"Yes, Ash, what is this all about?" his mother asked, not hiding the rising anger in her voice.

"It really is a long story," Misty answered for her husband. "We'll tell you when we can. Right now, please trust us when we say that they are all here to help us."

The cliff was silent for a few moments, aside from the stormy clouds and thrashing waves, while everyone engaged themselves in their own thoughts.

"All right Ash," Jenny finally spoke up. "Since I know you and you are a very dependable individual, I'll trust you for now. However, don't test me or any of the other police officers; if any one of these guys makes one false move, I'm holding you responsible. We have enough problems to deal with already."

Ash only had time to nod when Jenny's radio called out to her. She listened to the police orders coming from the other side before giving a huge sigh and delivering her response.

"Not again," Jenny cringed once the dispatcher hung up. "Lavender Town has fallen under Team Rocket control."

Everyone gasped.

"That's all of Eastern Kanto," the officer cringed. "We can't figure out how they're striking so quickly."

"Wait a minute, what's going on here?" Misty interrupted. "We're gone for only three weeks and Team Rocket has half a continent?"

"Believe me, you're not the only one surprised," Max spoke for the first time. "They seized Fuchsia overnight last week and then took every town one by one up the coast."

"And this time, they're not just stealing Pokémon," May added. "They're massacring the populations of each town they take."

"To say we're all shocked by this sudden assault is an understatement," Brock commented. "Kanto isn't safe anymore, which is why all of us are here right now. There's no telling where they'll strike next."

"I'm not quite sure it's safe here either," Jenny cut in. "Boaters have been reporting sightings of odd creatures beginning to populate a few of the Orange Islands. None have gotten a solid look at them, but they say their silhouettes look almost demonic."

Jenny's final word clanged a huge cord with Ash, Misty, and the Azeroth population.

"Did you say demonic?" Thrall asked, jumping to his feet.

"Yes, demonic," Jenny confirmed. "Why? Do you know something about them?"

"It's the Legion," Ash remarked. "The Burning Legion is here. Jenny, which islands have they been seen on?"

Jenny gave Ash a confused stare. "Who…what…? Ash, if you're thinking of battling, you need to forget about it. They have some sort of strange power that keeps everyone away."

"Jenny, Mom, you guys, listen up," said Ash, now voicing himself in a stern and declaring tone. "We need to contain those demons now or the whole world is finished. They come from across the universe, as a part of a large army known as the Burning Legion." He turned toward Thrall and Jaina. "These friends I've brought from Azeroth have dealt with the Legion for generations. They've volunteered to come and help save our world."

The words slowly seeped their way into the minds of the quintet. All showed a number of expressions that went by rather quickly.

"Ash, we realize that supernatural beings and powers could possibly exist," Brock finally spoke up, "but it's hard to believe that there's actually an army of demons sent in from outer space to kill us."

"Yet it's true," Jaina calmly responded. "The Burning Legion is known to travel from world to world, destroying all forms of order and harmony and leaving the universe in flames. They've been after our world for over ten thousand years. They've destroyed and corrupted a large portion of it. It was only a matter of time before they discovered your world, and I'm afraid the time is now."

"Misty and I have seen those demons up close and personal as well," added Ash. "We had a near death encounter, so we know it's true."

The others paused for a few moments, trying to digest the large amount of new information. Ash could understand what they were going through, self-consciously admitting that he would feel the same way if he were in their position.

"Hmm, I could let you go check them out," Jenny finally spoke up. "But no one we've known has any power to get near them. Everyone's Pokémon have been brought down before they could get within attacking range."

"We know how to break through," declared Thrall. "We've fought their kind far too many times to count."

Officer Jenny stood and pondered for nearly a minute while everyone awaited her answer.

"Okay, I'll let you handle them Ash," she said at last. "You have my authority to deal with them as you see fit."

"Thanks a ton Officer Jenny, we won't let you down!" Ash exclaimed. "Now which islands have they started appearing on?"

"Our radar detects that they've spread to Mandarin and Pinkin Islands," Jenny informed. "However, the source of the spread seems to be Trovita, although none of us know where they originate."

"Trovita?" gasped Misty. "Ash, Rudy and Mari live there!"

"Right," nodded Ash. "This could be trouble. We need to go help them."

"But how are we going to get there?" Misty pondered aloud.

"We can teleport you," Jaina answered. "Just picture Trovita in your minds. I can link my mind with yours and transport you there."

The human sorceress turned to the rest of the army.

"Everyone, get in contact with a mage," she ordered. "Mages, link your minds with mine. Ash, Misty, Thrall, place your hands on my shoulders."

"Let us come with you Ash," said Brock. "We want to help too."

"Yeah, could we?" asked May.

"This is more dangerous than anything we went through when we were younger," Ash informed. "Are you sure you want to put your lives in jeopardy?"

"Ash, we're your friends," said Max. "Whatever you and Misty are willing to go through, we're willing to do the same, no matter how risky."

Ash could only smile. Even though Max was now a fully grown teenager, some of his childhood never vanished with him. The desire to seek more adventure augmented in their travels, and his cravings for more were present within every conversation.

"Okay, you can come help if it's fine with Thrall and Jaina," Ash declared.

"We have no problems," Jaina responded. "Your friends are our friends, Ash. Go ahead and place your hands on my shoulders."

Everyone did as Jaina directed. Ash and Misty tried their hardest to concentrate on an image of Trovita Island, closing their eyes to maintain focus. Jaina linked her mind with theirs and channeled her spell, prompting the other mages of the thousand-man army to begin as well.

"Teleport: Trovita Island!" shouted Jaina seconds later. In an instant, almost everyone who stood atop the cliff vanished, leaving behind only Delia and Officer Jenny, both of whom had their faces in shock.

"I've known Ash since he became a Pokémon master, but I never thought he'd pull something like this," Jenny admitted. "Aren't you worried about him at all Delia?

"Of course I am," his mother confessed. "But Ash strong and knows how to bail himself out of these situations. I pray for his safety everyday."

"I do trust that he knows what he's doing," said Jenny, "but I have a bad feeling about what's going to happen on Trovita. I fear something unexpected will catch him off guard."

Jenny had no idea how accurate her omen would be.

- - - - - -

Rudy remained the gym leader of Trovita. After becoming a gym leader herself, Misty met with Rudy at least once every year during the annual global gym leaders' convention. She saw him other times during regional gym leader gatherings. Ash joined them once he ascended to his Pokémon master title, and the three had forged a solid friendship.

Mari remained affectionate toward Misty, whom she now looked up to as a role model. Mari announced two years ago that she would pursue a lifelong devotion to water Pokémon as well, crediting Misty for initially triggering her interest.

Trouble on Trovita thus meant danger for the lives of two friends, and Ash was the last person who would turn his back on a friend.

Ash and company were met with a sight of pure horror once they landed. The whirlpools in the sea were unnaturally large and indescribably violent. The peaceful paradise that nature had created and blessed was destroyed. Not a single living tree remained, and even the most desolate areas were scorched to a crisp. Though they were few and widespread, human remains nonetheless showed through the surface, adding more pain to the already tormented landscape. Demons of all kinds--dreadlords, felguards, felhounds, and infernos--ran rampant, hurling balls of fire at any object taller than the height of the ground, mercilessly destroying fauna, flora, and artificial creations. A first time visitor would never be able to picture Trovita Island as a tropical haven.

"Those are definitely the Legion's creatures," Jaina spoke first.

"Tell me this isn't happening," said Brock, completely unfamiliar with the Burning Legion.

"Tell me we're still in Outland," Misty whispered.

"This place will become Outland if we don't stop them now," said Thrall. "The army is ready. Ash, give us the word and we'll slay them all."

Ash needed no hesitation. His eyes had never witnessed such reckless destruction. Not even the combined powers of the three greatest evils in the Pokémon world, Teams Rocket, Aqua, and Magma, would be able to produce the sight in front of him.

"Slay the demons," he responded coldly. "Leave not a single one alive."

"All right men, just as we've trained for!" Thrall turned to the army from Azeroth and commanded. "Warriors, grab your weapons!"

The front line immediately drew out their axes, swords, maces, and shields.

"Rogues, get in stealth mode now!" Thrall cried, watching as a group of rogues vanished into thin air.

"Charge now! Go, go, go!"

Nearly two hundred warriors picked their targets and rushed forward in blazing speeds, catching the demons by surprise and driving their weapons into their foul bodies. Every warrior was donned in durable plate-mail armor, which protected them against any physical counterattack from the felguards. The first lines went down without a hitch, but by then the demons had noticed the sudden intrusion.

Infernos, flaming figures that stood well over twice the height of any tauren and made from rocks held together by nether powers, charged through to the front lines. The warriors took the battle to them as expected, and continued to hold their ground against a much stronger physical counterattack, but the added magic damage began taking its toll on the melee combat units. Seeing their brethren in trouble, paladins, shaman, druids, and priests snuck forward until they came within range and provided the warriors with necessary heals. The infernos' pure power sent several warriors flying through the air, yet none of them wasted any time in picking themselves back up and resuming battle.

Mages, hunters, and warlocks continued attacking from range while the warriors stood and commanded the attention. Rogues stuck from demon to demon, appearing at random and assassinating them one by one. Thrall had joined the battle as well, single handedly sending several felguards to their deaths with one strike of his gigantic two-handed hammer.

Jaina on the other hand seemed to be in a trance. A small group stayed behind to cover her while she meditated for a few minutes. Finally, her eyes opened and she turned to Ash and company.

"I picked up all traces of supernatural energy on this island," she informed the Pokémon trainers. "I've pinpointed the exact location of the portal through which they're entering this world. Unfortunately, their reinforcements are pouring in, and we'll never be able to fight our way up there in time before they outnumber us."

"There's got to be another way," Max declared.

"Pikapi!" the electric mouse atop Ash's shoulder cried before anyone could plan anything.

"What is it Pikachu?" Ash asked his long-time companion.

Pikachu pointed its paw toward the right side of the raging battle, where a young man was struggling in the arms of two dreadlords.

"It's Rudy!" Misty noticed first. "Those dreadlords have him!"

"I'll handle this," said Jaina calmly.

Standing up, the sorceress fired two frostbolts in the direction of the demons. Seemingly startled, they released their grips on the young man and he ran toward Ash and company. Before they could give chase, two dwarf paladins intercepted them and cast their holy spells to taunt them off the helpless gym leader. Infuriated, the dreadlords went after the paladins, joining the battle.

Rudy collapsed in front of Ash and Misty. Everyone was eager to hear how he survived for so long, but everyone also knew that this was not the time to interrogate.

"Rudy, are you all right?" asked Ash, trying to help his friend up.

"I'm…fine…" Rudy panted. "Oh god…they destroyed…everything…"

"Don't worry Rudy," said Misty. "We're here for you. Stay with us and you'll be safe."

"Wait, where's Mari?" Ash suddenly noticed the missing sister.

Instantly, Rudy's eyes were moist with tears. He raised his head to look at Ash and Misty, then lowered it again and let his tears freefall.

"No…" was all Misty could utter. "No…she can't be…"

"She is," Rudy responded barely above a whisper. "They killed her. At the very least, it was quick and painless, but they took her from me."

Misty now found tears of her own forming within her eyes. Mari, the bright young girl who was so determined to follow in her own footsteps, the girl who saw Misty as both a big sister and a stand up role model for female Pokémon trainers everywhere…gone, taken away well before her time was supposed to come.

Anger burned inside both Ash and Misty now. The Burning Legion had ended the life of one of their closest friends. Having seen what the Legion did to Azeroth and Outland, they knew the group would not stop until every part of their own world was charred.

Reinforcements continued showing up along the front lines where Thrall was leading the volunteers in battle. The Azeroth army's initial advancements had come to a halt, and although the only casualty has been an undead rogue, fatigue was beginning to catch up to the adventurers. Wave after wave of demons came pouring after them, barely giving them time to rest. Gradually, the army was falling back, and it seemed that what little area it could seize from the demons when the battle began would be lost once more.

"They can't hold out like this," said Jaina once she noticed the standstill. "We need to get to that portal and close it. Otherwise, the Legion's troop quantities will be unlimited."

"Yeah, but how?" asked May, not really expecting an answer. "We can't fight through their lines."

Just then, fate seemed to throw the group another curveball. A small band of felguards and felhounds, no more than thirty in number, broke through the volunteer army's defenses and rushed for Ash and company. The back line of the army, consisting of hunters, mages, and warlocks, had to send a number of fighters to give chase. Unfortunately, they failed to catch the demons in time, and Ash and the others themselves outnumbered.

Jaina's defenders immediately reached for their weapons, readying themselves for battle. The demons just stood their ground though, deciding to approach the group slowly.

"Pika," Pikachu cried, sparks flying from its cheeks.

"No Pikachu," said Ash. "They're too strong. Pokémon don't stand a chance against them. They can knock you out with one hit."

"What?" gasped Rudy. "Then what do we do?"

"Pray," Misty answered. "Have faith that Jaina and the others can fight them off."

"Rudy, Brock, you guys, get behind us," Ash ordered. "Let Jaina handle it. She'll call for us to help if she needs us."

Everyone did as Ash told them without hesitation. Ash watched as Jaina's guards formed a semicircle around her while the demons gradually closed the distance.

At that moment, the entire group received the shock of their lives.

- - - - - -

It was only a few seconds, but Ash had no idea what happened. When he opened his eyes, he was on the ground in pain with Pikachu beside him frightened and concerned. Brock, May, and Max were around him, also badly injured. Brock's arm looked dislocated, May was holding her clavicle as if it was broken, while Max screamed with both his hands covering his spine.

Ash shook his head to clear his senses. His pain was not severe, perhaps indicating that his injury wasn't relatively speaking either. He was about to get up and help his friends when the sight in front of him clarified.

There was Rudy surrounded by a dark violet aura with Misty around his right arm struggling to free herself from his grip. He had her around the waist, and she pounded his arm in desperation, but he seemed to be feeling no pain from her resistance.

Ash's mind had no time to even process what he saw before Rudy took on a new form of his own. Horns grew and curled upward from his forehead. His body mutated into an even larger, leaner form. Wings twice his width emerged from his back. When his eyes opened again, they were glowing blood-red. This was not the Rudy anyone knew. This figure was filled with nothing but hatred.

"Ash, help me!" Misty shrieked.

"Misty!" Ash called back. "Rudy, what the hell are you doing? Let her go!"

Rudy only cackled maniacally in response.

"I don't know what she saw in you, you pathetic fool," he bellowed hoarsely. "Now I can finally make things right, the way it was supposed to be."

"What in the world are you talking about Rudy?" asked Ash demandingly. "You're not making sense."

"You'll never understand," Rudy answered. "Eleven years ago, I met the girl of my dreams when she saved my sister. She was supposed to stay here with me for good, but no, she wanted to be with some dense moron. My heart's ached for her all these years."

"Oh my god," Ash murmured to himself, realizing what he was up to. Looking up, he noticed that Misty had stopped struggling, having also been listening to Rudy's words.

"The Burning Legion was willing to help me reclaim what's rightfully mine," Rudy continued. "And this time, with the Legion's blood flowing in my veins, I shall have her at last!"

"Rudy you idiot, she's my wife now!" Ash cried despite being convinced that he was now beyond reasoning.

The demonic man ignored him. "You were always naïve to trust me Ash," he said. "Some things never change. Now I'll make you suffer what I went through."

With those words, his left hand planted itself atop Misty's head and an infusion of energies flowed outward from him to the helpless woman. Misty screamed in terror, covering Ash's pleas for him to cease his torture. After several agonizing seconds, he finally stopped, releasing his grip and dropping Misty to the ground.

"Misty!" Ash yelled, running toward her.

"I wouldn't come near her if I were you Ash," Rudy spoke with a sinister smile. "Misty my dear, let this man know where he belongs."

"Of course honey."

Misty's words surprised everyone. It was not only what she said, but that she spoke in her normal voice as if nothing changed. Additionally, she sounded completely determined; her tone showed no indication of joking around.

"Gyarados, go!" Misty shouted, throwing a Pokéball. "Use hydro pump on Ash now!"

Ash had no time to even gasp in stunned horror before the powerful jet of water slammed into his chest, sending him flying and tumbling along the charred ground. Pikachu, seeing its trainer taking the abuse, fired a thunderbolt back at the giant Gyarados.

"Misty!" Brock cried. "What are you doing?"

"What my lover wants," replied Misty.

Ash ran back as quickly as he could, surprised himself that he sustained no additional injuries.

"Misty!" he hollered with Pikachu standing protectively in front of him. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," she answered coldly, linking her arm with Rudy's. "I've just finally seen where I truly belong."

"Misty, you love ME!" Ash exclaimed. "We just got married days ago!"

Ash was determined. He could have taken a thousand hydro pumps and simply run back to plead with her every time. But what she did next shattered him completely.

Misty reached for her left ring finger and removed the diamond from it, then threw it at Ash.

"I'll never make that mistake again," she said. "Get out of my life, Ash. I love Rudy."

This time, Ash could pop his eyes and gasp, but this time, he was too stunned to move. He simply held the ring he caught in his hands and stayed on his knees with the pain of her words having not yet completely hit him.

Rudy cackled once more and opened a portal behind him.

"She's mine by right, Ash Ketchum," he laughed. "You'll learn sooner or later." He took Misty's hand and turned his attention to her. "Looks like sacrificing Mari to my demon masters was worth it after all. Now they've brought you to me."

With a playful laugh, the two leaped into the portal hand in hand.

"After them!" Jaina ordered, drawing everyone's attention in the sorceress' direction.

The hunters and casters who had been pursuing the runaway demons who broke through their defenses had caught up and slain them with Jaina's guards while Rudy was taunting Ash. Having seen what happened, they ran for the portal to give chase.

Instead, they rand into an invisible shield around the portal, knocking them backward off their feet. They raised their weapons and attempted to break through the magic shield, but to no avail.

Jaina could only sigh in frustration. Soon, the portal closed by itself, leaving the group shocked and demoralized.

Misty's words, although induced through Rudy's spell, finally hit Ash like a ton of bricks. His heart felt as if it was slowly ripping itself apart, and he fully collapsed on the ground.

"Misty," he whispered to no one in particular. "Why?"

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AUTHOR'S NOTES: Okay, I'm the first to admit that I can't write action scenes. I don't think too highly of my descriptions. Anyway, did I surprise you at all? If I didn't, then I didn't do my job. Do tell me how I can get better if you believe you have some good advice. I take all your words to heart, so even if you don't, let me hear from you. I love all reader feedback, no matter how gentle or harsh.


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